No Matter What
by Allysecrimindfan
Summary: This story is about the JJ/Will dynamic, which I love. When having a job that can be dangerous and having a family that you love, what happens when both are pushed to the breaking point? When you're pushed to the breaking point?
1. Chapter 1

No matter what

By: Allyse

(I don't own these characters, but feel free to read, enjoy, and review)

_**Preface: JJ loved her life. She had a great boyfriend, and they had Henry, their three year old together. She had a job and co-workers that she loved. But happens when those things are tested or put in jeopardy? What happens when you come close to losing the ones you love or even losing yourself?**_

JJ took one last look around the BAU Bullpen before heading home after yet another long case. It was late, so she knew Henry would already be asleep. She hated the thought of not being there for him at bedtime. And although she and Will had gotten over the trouble they had been having with her being back at the BAU, she knew deep down he wanted her home more too. He wished she was home more, but he also understood that this was the job. She loved helping people, and she was good at it.

Sighing, she walked to the parking garage, got in her car, and drove home. Thoughts of this last case ran through her head. They had caught the Unsub, but so many lives had been lost before the team had been called to help. It was such a shame. Shaking her head of the disturbing images, JJ pulled into the garage at home. Grabbing her go bag, she noticed that just the few lights were on in the house. Will always said he'd leave the light on for her. Smiling at that thought, she opened the door.

Closing the door quietly behind her, and locking it, she looked up to see Will approaching her from the second floor. "Hey you." Will said greeting her with that southern drawl she loved so much. "Hey yourself", JJ said, putting her bag and purse down. "I tried keeping him awake for you, but with all the running he did today he pretty much passed out". Will wrapped his arms around JJ in tight hug, and kissed her forehead. JJ sighed into Will's chest. "It's okay", she murmured. "It's almost midnight. I'm ready to pass out too".

Taking JJ's hand, Will lead her upstairs to their bedroom. He dropped her bags on the floor and let go of her hand. JJ leaned up to kiss him briefly on the lips. "I'm going to take a quick shower babe. Maybe try to wash away the sweet smell of BAU jet fuel". She grabbed a fresh towel from the linen closet and made a bee-line for their bathroom. "Hurry back!" Will yelled after her. "I missed you".

"I missed you too!" she shouted from the other side door, water now running. Five minutes later JJ emerged from the shower feeling instantly better. Especially since Will had upgraded to wearing only a pair of jogging shorts. His back was to her, as he seemed to be rummaging through one of his bureau drawers for something. Smiling, JJ walked up behind him, and wrapped her arms around his waist. "I really missed you and Henry these last few days", she murmured into his back. Will turned in her arms so he could face her. Smiling down at her, he wrapped one arm around her waist and used the other to reach up and smooth down her hair, which was still damp from her shower. "We missed you too. I 'm just glad you always come home to us safe". JJ sighed contentedly in her boyfriend's arms, trying to snuggle in closer. As if that was even possible.

They stood just holding each other in silence for a few moments. JJ looked up at Will's face, seeing the love in his eyes. "I love you", he whispered. He brought his lips down to meet hers in a soft kiss. JJ brought hers arms up around his neck, and kissed him back. All the stress from the case, her missing him, and her love for him came out in that kiss. Will ran his hands up her back and into her hair as their kisses became deeper. Feverish. And then they slowed down. Will gently cupped her cheek, and she held his face with both hands. Slowly, their lips parted, and they both gasped, a bit out of breath.

Smiling, JJ pulled him into bed with her. She sighed, laying her head down on his chest while he held her. She could honestly stay like this forever. "Get some sleep love, and I'll be right here when you wake up", he whispered in her ear. And JJ knew it was true. Her eyelids were already closing as she ran a hand across his hard abs. The images of the last case the team had been on flying out of her head. She felt Will stroking her hair as she drifted off to sleep. It felt so good to be home.

Sunlight filtered through the curtains as JJ slowly opened her eyes. She took a moment to get the kinks out her neck, and soon realized she had an audience. Rolling over on her back she saw that will was grinning at her. "Why are watching me sleep?" JJ asked. "It's creepy babe". Will chuckled, reaching out to caress her arm. "I mostly just was watching to see if you were still breathing cher. You were sleeping pretty hard there."

"I'm awake now. What time is it anyway?" JJ pushed herself up on her elbows. "It feels late. " Will looked over at the alarm clock that sat on JJ's nightstand. "Actually, it's just past eight. Not late, although apparently Henry has decided to sleep in". Will let out a short laugh. "Poor little guy must have been more tired than I thought". JJ flopped back down on the bed and closed her eyes. "Smart kid", she murmured. She opened her eyes when she felt Will kiss the curve of her shoulder. "I'm guessing that you don't want me to go back to sleep?" JJ asked, smiling when Will's lips travelled up her neck. Will stopped kissing her neck long enough to look down into his girlfriend's gorgeous blue eyes. "What do you think?" he asked.

In an answer to his question, JJ pulled him down to her so she could reach his lips. She gave him a slow and sensual kiss. Will deepened the kiss, his tongue probing deep in her mouth. JJ sighed, pulling him closer still, until he lay on top of her. She ran her fingers through his hair, and down his smooth muscular back. His hand trailed down her arm then under her t-shirt. He loved how soft her skin was. Breaking away from her lips, he trailed a line of fiery kisses, down her neck to her collarbone. JJ reached for him, leading is face back up hers. "Come here", she whispered breathlessly. Their lips joined again, and JJ moaned into his mouth. God, he knew how to kiss! "I love you so much", Will said in between kisses. The couple had reached a fevered pitch when JJ could've sworn she heard something off in the distance. "Babe, hold up a sec", JJ said trying to catch her breath. "Did you hear that?" Will froze, still on top of JJ to listen for what she had heard. "I didn't hear…", then they both heard the very distinct sound of Henry calling for his mom from his room across the hall.

Will sighed, burying his head in the crook of JJ's neck. "I guess that's my cue", she said smiling. "We can continue this later". The sound of their son's voice came across the hall again. Will rolled off of JJ so she could get out of bed. "You bet we will." he said. "Come down for breakfast Will." JJ said on her way across the hall to get Henry. "Yeah, in a minute!" Will called after JJ. He leaned back, and closed his eyes for a minute, trying to get his body to where his head was at. Will's body was still on fire from JJ's touch. But sex wasn't on the table anymore this morning. After another minute he threw on a shirt and headed downstairs to eat breakfast with his family.

"Daddy!" Henry shouted running over to Will and jumping into his arms. "Mommy's home!" Will laughed, carrying his son back over to where JJ stood making Henry's favorite breakfast. Chocolate chip pancakes and fresh strawberries. "I see that buddy", Will said, raising his eyebrows suggestively at JJ, who shook her head and laughed. "She's making my favorite", Henry said. "You wanna share with me?" Will ruffled his son's blond hair, as they sat on stools at the breakfast bar. "Sure thing bud." JJ turned around with a plate of food in hand. "Here you go guys. Breakfast is served." She sat down on Henry's other side, nibbling on a strawberry herself. "Thank you mommy!" Henry said, his eyes shining. "You're welcome honey", JJ said smiling down at him. Henry looked up at his dad. "Daddy tell mommy thank you?" he asked innocently. Will laughed. "You're right son. Thank you babe." Will covered Henry's ears briefly then continued. "I'll be sure to give you a proper thank you later. Kind of like the one I was trying to give you this morning." He uncovered Henry's ears, who just continued to eat his breakfast. "You're terrible", JJ mouthed to will over their son's head.

The LaMontagne-Jareau family continued to enjoy their Sunday as a family. JJ loved having these moments with her family together. Especially since she knew she would get that call from their unit chief Hotch or technical analyst Garcia about their next case. After a day at the park, and some short errands, Henry was exhausted again. He was in bed by 7:30 that night. JJ closed his bedroom door after making sure he was fast asleep. Walking downstairs, she found Will on the living room couch, beer in hand. He smiled, looking up at her. "Want me to get you one?" he asked about to get off the couch. JJ pushed him back down into a sitting position. "I'll just have a sip of yours", she said taking the bottle from him and taking a quick swig. She flopped down next to him on the couch. Will wrapped his arm around her shoulder, and pulled her close. Just then, JJ's phone buzzed. "Right on cue", she said with a hint of sarcasm. She read the text, quickly replied, and put her phone down. "I've got be in by 7am in the morning. We have a case, but it's local." Will leaned in and kissed her temple. "Does that mean I get you home at night?" he asked. "Most likely", she replied. "If all goes well".

Will turned JJ around so she was facing him. "About earlier…" he started. JJ smiled up at him, knowing where he was going. "I think I'm pretty sure I know where we left off". She kissed him passionately, and he reached over and sat his beer bottle down, so he could wrap both arms around her. He kissed her hotly, searchingly, as her tongue probed his mouth. He laid her on her back, as their lips never broke contact. Not even when breathing became an issue. His hands snaked under her top to caress her toned stomach, and her hands were on his back under his shirt. Pretty soon clothes were being pulled off, and they became of tangle of limbs as they made love on the couch.

JJ reached up and hit the "off" button on the alarm clock. She looked to Will's side of the bed to see him still passed out. How they made it to the bed last night after going a couple rounds on the living room couch, she'll never know. Grinning to herself, JJ got out of bed. Local case meant no go bag, so that was nice. The only thing she had gathered from Garcia's text last night that there were some women found dead, and that there apparently seemed to be a pattern. Once dressed, and presentable looking, JJ walked back into the bedroom to wake Will. She leaned down and kissed him sweetly on his cheek. "Baby wake up", she said. "I've got to get going." Will opened his eyes, reaching for her hand. "I was having the best dream. " He sat up more so he was at eye level with her. "We had just had hot sex on the couch. Twice. Then again in bed, and I'm pretty sure on the floor too. Then I asked you to marry me." He leaned in and laid a slow, moist kiss on her neck. JJ giggled at his recounting of last night's events. "Wow that sounds like quite a dream! Did I ever answer your marriage question?" Shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly, he answered. "You said what you always say JJ."

JJ, sensing that this conversation wasn't going where she wanted it to, kissed him on the lips before rising off the bed. "I really do have to get going. Kiss Henry for me, and tell him I should be home soon." She slung her purse over her shoulder, looking back at Will lying in their bed one last time. "I love you", she said. "I know", Will answered. "I love you too."

JJ caught up with Garcia and Morgan in the elevator on the way into the BAU. "Good morning JJ. How's my other favorite blond doing this morning?" JJ smiled up at Derek. "I'm good for seven in the morning." JJ looked at Garcia who had yet to say anything, but seemed to be studying JJ as well. "What's up Pen? You've got that look about you." JJ nudged Derek so he could see what she meant. He asked, "What's up baby girl? Is your mind working overtime?" Garcia shook her head at JJ. "Don't you what's up Garcia me! I have a look about me? You definitely have a look about you!"

"Now I'm confused", Derek said as they stepped off of the elevator. Penelope rambled on. "You and that hot piece of detective you've got were fighting a week ago, and you were walking around here looking all dejected." JJ shrugged her shoulders at her best friend. "So".

"Jennifer Jareau, I know that look! It's the look that says, I-just-got-laid-and-nothing-can-break-my-mood-look!" JJ cringed at her friend's brashness in front of Derek. Glancing over at him, she saw that he had a smirk on his face. Was she that transparent? "I'm having a good morning Pen, don't ruin it by broadcasting Will's and mine sex life, okay?"

"All I meant was that you extra happy this morning love. Happier than you have been lately anyway."

Derek chimed in as they walked into the roundtable room to meet the rest of the team. "Penelope is right JJ. Besides, happy looks good on you." JJ shook her head, smiling as she sat down for their case briefing. She hated working that working with profilers; they seemed to know everything that's going on with her before she even said anything. And of course now she was a profiler herself, so she definitely understood.

Hotch and Garcia gave the team the specifics of the new case. Woman being stalked and murdered. Three so far in their late twenties to early thirties. No sexual assault. They seemed to be blitz attacks. Bodies being dumped in alleys, but nit very well hidden. The connection between the victims seem to be this man named Harold. DCPD had sent over a file on him listing a few priors on his record. Sexual harassment, stalking, and lude behavior to name a few. Seemed all they had to do was find the guy, but he was very good at flying under the radar it seemed.

"What else do we know so far?" Prentiss asked once Hotch was done talking. Reid chimed in, glancing over is case file. He still didn't use the iPads the rest of them did. "It seems he has a sister who is local. She might be worth interviewing again. Make sure she's not hiding him, or that she doesn't know anything."

"I agree." Rossi stated. "If this is her brother, she has to have some idea of what he's been up to." A shiver ran down JJ's spine, and Emily patted her hand reassuringly. The cases that involved woman her age and type always freaked her out. These poor women and what they must have gone through only to die at the hands of some psycho. The sound of Hotch's voice brought her thoughts back to the task at hand. "Morgan, I want you to take Dave and Prentiss to where the brother has been suspected of hiding out. Make sure you take DCPD for back up."

He turned his attention to his technical analyst. "Garcia, dig up whatever you can the Unsub's pattern. Survailence, money changing hands, and whatever else could be trailed." He turned to JJ and Reid. "You two come with me. We're going to interview the sister, and she if she can give us any more insight to who this guy really is." They all gathered their things and walked out of the room to their appointed assignments.

Garcia called after them. "Don't forget to check in with me my loves!" Morgan hugged her on his way to the elevator. "Don't worry baby girl. It's us. We'll be fine." And with that the team headed off to solve yet another case.

_**Okay folks, that's it for the first chapter. I have an idea of where I want to go with this, so just bear with me. I like J/JWill, so that's what I'm going to try to focus on. Feel free to review. Look for another update soon, as I don't know how long the story is going to be yet. **_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_**Thank you all for reading and reviewing. It's been years since I've submitted any kind of writing, and all feedback is welcome.**_

_**Once again, I don't own these characters. I just have unhealthy obsession with them.**_

JJ climbed into the passenger seat of the bureau SUV with Hotch at the wheel and Reid sitting in the back. The other half the team headed out to hopefully catch the Unsub where he was supposedly laying low. She hoped they would all be safe in whatever it was they were going to wind up getting into. Her thoughts were interrupted by Spencer.

"Hey guys, since we have almost a forty minute drive, it might be a good idea to the case files on the way."

JJ chuckled at Reid's enthusiasm while Hotch shook his head without saying anything. "Spence, I think we're good. Besides, we're just talking to the sister. She may not even know anything." JJ said.

"JJ's right." Hotch chimed in. "Let's get a feel for whether or not she knows anything and go from there."

"If we're not going to over the case file, I've got these great books on tape!" Spencer started digging around in his bag. "How would you guys like to listen to the works of Dr. Hutchings, and his scientific theories on evolution? It's narrated by Peter Coyote."

"No!" Hotch and JJ said in unison.

"What we mean, Spence, is that there isn't enough time to listen to probably not even a chapter before we get to where we're going." JJ reached to the back seat to playfully punch the semi-dejected looking Dr.'s knee.

"Hey I understand if you guys aren't ready to have your minds blown by such theories." Spence smiled to himself, picking up an actual book that he brought with him, and quickly started to read it. Hotch just shook his head trying not to smile.

Just then the vehicle chimed, signaling them that a teammate was calling. It was Morgan. "What do have Morgan?" Hotch asked after hitting the 'talk' button overhead.

"We got a tip that there's been some activity today at this dirt bag's hide out. I have Garcia sending us all surveillance videos."

Emily chimed in. "DCPD also got report of another missing woman just this morning. Same type. Late twenties to early thirties, blond, and lives alone."

"So there's a good chance that he's holding here there." Hotch replied. "You guys I want you to stake out the place. See if you can get a feel if he's in there or if this latest victim is in there."

"Will do Aaron." Rossi said. "Let us know if the sister is any help."

"Got it." Hotch said hanging up. They were running out of time and it was barely noon.

Meanwhile, Morgan, Prentiss, and Rossi had arrived at their destination. They watched the monitors closely from inside the SWAT van that had followed them to the Unsub's trailer. Or so-called hide out.

"Anything?" Emily asked peering over Derek's shoulder at the screen.

"Nothing yet. I just wish this son of a bitch would make a move!"

"He will, Derek." Rossi said. "And when he does, we'll be ready."

Hotch pulled into the driveway of Harold Jennings' sister Megan. The three agents climbed out of SUV and made their way up to the front door. Hotch was already pulling out his badge. The others followed suit. He knocked firmly on the door.

"Ms. Jennings?" He called. "Ms. Jennings, FBI, we'd like a word please."

JJ glanced between Reid and Hotch as they heard someone approaching the door.

"Just a minute!" the voice called. Seconds later the door opened slowly. A woman, who looked to be in her late thirties to early forties, answered the door. "Can I help you folks?" she asked.

"Ma'am." Hotch started, holding up his badge. "I'm SSA Hotch, and this SSA Jareau and Dr. Reid."

"Ms. Jennings we need to ask you some questions about your brother Harold. Is it okay if we come in?" JJ asked. "Thank you", she said as the woman nodded, waving the agents inside.

"Can I offer you folks something to eat or drink? Seems like you came quite a ways if you're from the FBI." The woman smiled nervously. "I don't have much, but…"

"No thank you mam." Hotch answered for them all.

Spencer began the line of questioning. "Ms. Jennings, when was the last time you spoke with or interacted with Harold?"

"He called me last month asking for money." She spoke softly. "I don't really have any to give, and when I told him that he hung up on me."

"So that's the last time you've been in contact with him?" JJ asked the woman gently. She nodded her head without speaking.

Hotch peered at the woman closely. "Ma'am, have you heard about the woman found missing and turned turning up dead in the news?"

"Yeah, I've seen a few news stories about it." She took a deep breath before asking, "What does any of that have to do with me or Harold?"

"Your brother is the main suspect of those murders."

JJ touched the woman's hand as tears started to well up in her eyes at Hotch's words. "Had your brother been exhibiting any strange behavior last time you saw him or spoke to him?"

Just then Hotch's phone rang. Seeing that it was Prentiss, he excused himself into a corner of the room to answer it. "Emily what is it?"

"Hotch we're about to move in on him! He's got another woman in there with him. He's been in and out of there. It's him!"

"Good." Hotch replied. "Make sure you all follow the raid to the letter. We don't need Strauss on our backs. And use SWAT to its fullest advantage!" He looked over at Reid and JJ still talking the Unsub's sister. "We'll wrap things up here and meet you back at the BAU."

"Gotcha. I'll call Garcia and let her know we'll be home soon."

Hotch hung up with Prentiss and motioned for JJ and Reid to join him in the corner of the woman's living room. "What's up Hotch?" JJ asked.

"That was Emily. They found the Unsub and the last woman that had been abducted."

"Do we tell her?" Reid asked, motioning toward the sister.

"Yes we do. With tact."

"It's all so sad." JJ commented. "She seems like she's already lost so much."

"She's better off knowing who her brother really is." Reid said matter if factly.

They walked back over to rejoin Ms. Jennings who was still seated on the couch to tell her what was going on.

Meanwhile…

Morgan had led the team SWAT as they descended upon the Unsub's trailer. He was caught completely caught off guard with nowhere to run or hide. Morgan and an officer tackled him to the ground, while Prentiss and Rossi over to hos captive who was tied up on a corner.

"It's over you son of a bitch!" Morgan spit out. He slapped handcuffs on the guys and stood him up, shoving him the waiting arms two officers.

The Unsub shook his head and laughed. "Is it over agent? How can you be so sure I haven't already groomed someone to take over my legacy?"

"What exactly does that mean?" Rossi asked Harold, looking him in the eyes.

"It means, agents, that I searched for my missing half for a long time." His eyes were dead calm for someone who had just gotten caught red handed. "Just because you have me doesn't mean this ends."

They all looked at each other and then back at the unsub. "We need to find out what he means!" Emily said urgently. Just then her phone buzzed. It was Garcia.

"You're on speaker PG!"

"Oh my God guys! Are you still at the crime scene?"

"We are mama! What's up?" Morgan asked. He watched as the cops loaded Jennings into the back of a police car and the medics loaded the woman into the ambulance.

"I'd tell you all to sit if I thought that it was even remotely possible that you could. Or would for that matter…."

"Garcia!" Rossi yelled impatiently.

"Right sir. Sorry!" She paused briefly for dramatic affect before going on. "I did some varsity level research and discovered something I would say is very important!"

"And what might that be?" Dave asked.

"That there are two, count 'em two Harold Jennings!"

"Explain please." Prentiss pleaded.

"Quickie version for my loves. Harold has a twin brother named Alan. They had been separated at birth, but there's evidence they've been in contact. A lot in the last few months."

"The other half he had been searching for." Morgan said.

"Actually, boo, it's the other way around. Apparently the brother Alan had been searching for our creeper for a long time. There's evidence of notes, letters, and emails stating that he had always wanted a brother to look up to."

"You guys we need to adjust the profile asap!" Morgan barked. "This Alan guys= is just going to take over where his brother left off."

"Thanks for the info Penelope." Rossi said. "Good work!"

"The pleasure was all mine kind sir. Garcia out!"

"Prentiss call Hotch and tell him what's going. The sister had to have known about this other brother." Emily nodded at Derek's instruction, immediately dialing Hotch's cell.

The other members of the team had just been trying to explain what was happening Hotch's phone rang again. "It's Prentiss." He said to the others before quickly stepping away to answer. "Emily?"

"Hotch we have to adjust the profile!" She sounded almost frantic.

Keeping his voice low he asked, "What did you find?"

"Garcia came back with some intel about the unsub."

"Go on." He was getting impatient.

"Hotch this guy has a long lost brother. A twin brother!"

"One who had been helping our unsub, and will continue to do so even though we have him in custody." He knew where Emily was going with her news as soon as the words left her mouth. "Alright Prentiss, thanks." He said before hanging up. "Dammit." He swore under his breath.

"Hotch…?" JJ looked at their unit chief in confusion. She knew something wasn't right.

"What's up?" Spencer asked.

Hotch looked at his agents then looked right into Megan Jennings eyes. The woman's lip quivered. "What can you tell us about your other brother Alan?"

"I don't know…" she stopped unable to continue.

"You don't know what I'm talking about? Harold didn't mention to you that his long lost twin brother had found him last time you spoke?"

"Ma'am please" JJ said, "You need to tell us everything you know. There are women out there that could still be on danger."

"Please, I'm telling you I don't know where Alan is!"

Hotch turned to JJ. "Call DCPD and have them put out an APB on Alan Jennings. Have them set up road blocks if they have to!"

"You got it." JJ said dialing and walking out of the room.

Hotch and Reid were left in the living room with the woman when all three of them heard a noise.

"Was that a car?" Reid asked.

"It was." Hotch said. He turned to the woman. "Are you expecting company?"

"No I'm not."

"Reid you stay with Ms. Jennings. I'll get JJ and we'll check it out."

Hotch stopped cold as he began to walk in the direction of where JJ went. Reid watched as Hotch walked backwards into the living room. His hands were up/

"What the…?" Reid's eyes widened as JJ walked stiffly back into the living room to join them. Then his breath caught in his throat. A man, holding a gun to JJ's back came in behind her and sneered at the group.

"Well, well, well little sis." He smiled coolly at his sister, gun still aimed at the blond agent. "What do we have here?"

Hotch drew his weapon instantly, training it on the second unsub. Reid's eyes grew wide with worry as JJ moved slowly as to not spook Alan. She didn't want to risk the unsub shooting her or anyone else.

"I heard the FBI caught up to my long lost brother. " He sneered at the agents, keeping his gun to JJ's back. "So of course coming to my sister for some interrogation was the next logical step."

"Put you weapon down, and let her go." Hotch said. "You have to know this won't end well for you."

"It won't end well?" He asked. "It already hasn't ended well. You took away the brother I searched for all this time!"

"You two don't have to hurt anyone else." JJ said calmly, trying to reason with him. The last thing she wanted to do was show this lowlife fear.

"Look at your sister." Reid pointed out to Alan. "She's been through enough already." Ms. Jennings shrank into the corner of the room. She was ashamed that this is what her family had become. Two brothers. Two killers.

Alan moved from behind JJ still keeping the gun on her so she wouldn't try anything. This gave Hotch a better shot at this scum.

"Don't even think about it agent." He said snidely. "Do you think you can pull that trigger fast enough?"

"I know I can." Hotch answered. His voice was taught with anger. His phone started to buzz, but he ignored it. He could not let this guy get a shot off. JJ's life counted on it.

Reid held up his hands. "Why don't we just stop and think a minute?" He looked at JJ whom nodded for him to continue. "Maybe we can make some sort of deal. Talk to the police."

"No deals agents. This ends right here, right now."

"Please stop this!" Megan Jennings spoke for the first time since her brother came into the house. "Don't do this!"

"Look at her Megan." He said referring to JJ. "She's so beautiful. Just Harold's type. And now mine too!" His finger moved to the trigger, and JJ body visibly stiffened.

"No!" Megan implored. She ran to stop her brother when two shots rang out. One right after the other. Alan immediately dropped to the floor. His sister ran over to him.

Reid stood in shock as Hotch ran to kick the gun away from the unsub. Alan was dead from a gunshot to the head, but getting the weapon away was standard protocol.

"JJ, are you okay?" Reid asked. JJ stood rooted to the spot, her face white as a sheet. "JJ..?"

Hotch looked closely at JJ, approaching her. She clutched her midsection. That's when he saw it. Blood spilled out from between her fingers and started to drip on the floor. "Oh my God JJ! Reid she's been hit!"

They both crossed the room in seconds, catching her as she sank to the floor.

"Hotch.." she whispered.

"JJ we got you. You're okay." He tried to sound as soothing as humanly possible even though panic was probably written all over his face.

"Reid, get a medic here now! Ms. Jennings, I need you to get a towel so I can try to stop the bleeding!" He laid JJ gently on her back.

Tears rolled down her cheeks. "Hotch you have to…." She was having trouble breathing.

"Don't try to talk." he said, as Reid came back in the room followed by Megan who handed Hotch a towel. "I have to put pressure on the wound, JJ." He pressed the towel to her midsection, and she gasped in pain.

"Medics are on the way." Reid said. He knelt beside Hotch so he could hold JJ's and.

"You have to call Will." she whispered to them. She closed her eyes.

"I will JJ. Just please try to stay awake, okay?"

Reid looked at his unit chief and back down at his team member. His best friend.

JJ started to drift into darkness, although she could still hear Reid's and Hotch's voices pleading with her to stay awake. She thought of Will and Henry. She loved them so much. So much darkness…

_**Okay folks I'm going to cliffhang you there. This chapter aids in the setup of the next ones to come. It was mostly team centric, but needed to be right now. More JJ/Will next chapter. Read, enjoy, and hopefully review….**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Okay folks, here goes chapter 3! I'm trying to steer things back to more Will/JJ, but as Criminal Minds fans, we know the team has got to be in there somewhere.**_

_**I appreciate the reviews. Keep them coming. And as always, those lucky bastards at CBS own these characters. I don't.**_

Reid looked up at the sound of sirens in the distance. "They need to hurry up!" He looked back down at JJ. She was in and out of consciousness. Blood still spilled from the gunshot wound to her upper abdomen. He knew it hurt, but he pressed towel Megan Jennings had given them to try and stop the bleeding.

"Will…" JJ's voice was faint, but Hotch and Reid were glad she was still with them. Her eyes were closed, and she occasionally squeezed Spencer's hand.

"Hotch?" Spencer looked up his boss. "We have to call Will."

"I know." Hotch squeezed his eyes shut briefly before pulling his phone out again. The sirens were upon them now. A sign that the ambulance had finally arrived.

Reid suddenly noticed that JJ's hand went slack in his. "JJ?" He squeezed her hand, and leaned in close to her chest. "Hotch she's not breathing!" Just then two paramedics burst through the door, police in tow.

"Sir, give us room to work!" One of the paramedics barked. Reid jumped out of the way so they could get to JJ.

Hotch found Will's number in his phone dialed it. _What was he supposed to say?_ He held his breath as the phone rang once, twice, three times…

"Lamontagne here." Will answered.

"Will it Agent Hotchner." He looked over at the medics working feverishly on JJ.

"Hotch why are you calling me? Where's JJ?" He was already frantic.

"Will something's happened." Hotch faltered before continuing. "JJ's been hurt. You need to meet us at the hospital now."

"What happened?" Will asked. "I'm coming right now!"

"I'll fill you in. They'll most likely take her to Mercy." Hotch watched as medics intubated JJ so she could breathe. "I'll call you if they go somewhere different."

Hotch walked over to stand beside Reid as the medics loaded JJ in the ambulance.

"Reid, go with her. I don't want her to be alone."

Reid nodded his response. He still couldn't believe any of this was happening. "You'll call the others?" he asked.

"Right now." Hotch watched Reid climb in the ambulance behind JJ and the other medic. _Please let her be okay, he thought._

Hotch made sure the police were okay to clear the crime scene, and that they would tend to Ms. Jennings as well. After all, he did just shoot and kill her brother. Then he pulled out his phone to make yet another dreaded phone. This time, to the rest of his team. They had to expecting them back by now. He dialed Rossi's number.

"Aaron, are you guys headed back? Garcia said there was a 911 call made out to there. I tried calling you a little bit ago."

"Dave, listen…" Hotch's voice sounded almost broken.

"Hotch, what's happened?" Rossi looked at Morgan and Prentiss, who in turn looked back at him with confusion.

"Dave, its JJ." Hotch was now driving his SUV to the hospital to catch Reid. And Will. "She's been shot. Get the others, and meet us at Mercy Hospital. "

"We're on our way." Rossi said. "Aaron is there anything else you're not saying?"

"I'll fill you all in at the hospital."

"Got it." Rossi said before hanging up. He turned to Morgan and Prentiss who were now looking at him expectantly.

"Rossi, what is it?" Morgan asked. "You look like you've seen a ghost or something."

"Was that Hotch?" Prentiss asked. "Shouldn't they be headed back here?"

Dave looked around the bullpen before answering their questions. "Where's Penelope?"

"Rossi tell us what's going on!" Derek demanded of the elder profiler.

"That was Hotch. We need to get Garcia and go." He started out the door towards Garcia's lair.

Prentiss and Morgan practically ran to catch up with him. Rossi walked swiftly down the hallway.

"Rossi what's happening?" Prentiss asked as they reached the door to where they would find their technical analyst. She touched his arm, forcing him to turn and face them.

"It's JJ." He answered facing them squarely. "She was shot, and we need to meet them at the hospital."

"My god Dave!" Prentiss was in shock. "Is she…?"

"What the hell happened out there?" Morgan asked.

"I don't have the details, but we need to tell Garcia, and we need to go!"

Nodding they walked into Garcia's control center. She turned around at the sound of her door opening. "There you guys are!" She sounded relieved. "Can we debrief and get the frack out of here?" Nobody said anything. Emily opened her mouth to speak, but snapped it closed again.

"Hello? Guys what's going on?" She looked at their faces and knew something wasn't right. "What's with the uber serious faces? Where's Hotch, JJ and Boy Wonder?"

Rossi cleared his throat, ready to tell Garcia what happened to her best friend. Morgan, however beat him to the punch. "Baby girl listen…" he began. "JJ's been hurt, and we need to meet Hotch, Reid, and Will at the hospital."

"Oh no my girl! What happened?" Prentiss rubbed Garcia's arm reassuringly. Tears welled up in both of their eyes.

"Let's get going." Morgan said propelling an almost hyperventilating Garcia out the door to the elevator. He said a silent prayer for his team member and friend.

Meanwhile….

Will drove through traffic as if in a haze. _Just get to the hospital and see what's what, he kept thinking. _He had just been on his way out to go over some case files at DCPD. He had dropped Henry off at daycare after JJ left this morning. _Henry, Will thought. What do I tell our son when he asks about his mommy? _Will tried to shake negative thoughts out of his head, as he approached Mercy Hospital. Most of all he needed to find out what happened to his girlfriend and how she was doing.

As Will drove through the last intersection before the hospital entrance, an ambulance whizzed by, sirens blaring. His heart rate sped up instinctively. _JJ… _ He accelerated his car trying to catch up to the emergency vehicle. It screeched to a halt at the emergency entrance, and Will followed suit in his car. He didn't care if it was a No Parking Zone. Tow the goddamn car.

Just then the ambulance doors flew open, and Spencer jumped out first. A paramedic in the back and the ones up front came next. Will held his breath as he looked at Spencer. He saw the pain in his eyes.

"Spencer…" Will started. Then came the stretcher out of the ambulance. Will hadn't even noticed that Hotch had joined them now as well. There was a rush of ER doctors around JJ, but Will saw her. He saw the blood. He saw how pale her skin looked. And he saw that she had a tube in her mouth and down her throat. _She couldn't breathe, he thought_. Will felt the sting of tears behind his eyes.

"My god." He murmured. Then as if shocked to life he ran after the doctors whisking JJ away. He caught them at the elevator, and reached out for her hand.

"JJ, baby I'm here!" Her hand felt so clammy and lifeless.

"Sir, you need to step aside so we can get her to the OR!"

Will would not be pushed aside though. "Tell me what happened!" He started yelling. "JJ I'm here!" Hotch pulled him back so the elevator doors could close. Will stood helplessly as they took his girlfriend up to surgery. He noticed Reid looking at him, almost fearfully. And Hotch still had a grip on his arm.

"Will let's go up to the waiting room so we can get an update when they have one." Hotch looked Will sorrowfully in the eye. He remembered how he reacted when Haley…

The elevator doors opened again and the three men stepped inside. Will became aware that Hotch was holding onto his arm as if he needed to be guided. He wrenched his arm out of the agent's grasp.

"Get your hands off of me!" Will was breathing heavy, and a stray tear made its way down his cheek. "You need to tell me what happened to JJ. And you need to tell me right now!"

Hotch nodded, starting to speak as they reached the OR waiting room. Just then the rest of his team rushed over. "Will…" Hotch began.

Morgan spoke up first. "Hotch what the hell happened out there?" He looked between Will and Hotch, trying to read their expressions. "How's JJ?"

Hotch held up his hand for Morgan to be silent. He turned to Will. "Will JJ was shot. " He looked at the rest of team quickly, noting their reaction, including Garcia's gasp that turned into a sob.

"How…?" Will asked Hotch. "She texted me that you guys were going to interview some wack-job's sister! How the hell does she get shot from doing that?"

"We were conducting an interview with a possible witness." He lowered his eyes, not wanting to see the hurt that lie in Will's. "It should've been routine, but we were surprised by another suspect that had come to light. He caught JJ by herself and all if us off guard."

"The twin brother." Prentiss murmured. She shook her head in disbelief.

"And this brother is dead now, I presume?" Rossi asked.

"He is." Hotch said nodding. He looked back at Will. "I'm so sorry."

Will sank down onto the nearest sofa. He put his head in his hands, and closed his eyes. _This is all a nightmare, he thought. This can't be. We're not even married! What if she…? And Henry! My god, he was starting to feel sick_. He looked up see Spencer pacing the room. Garcia sat with Morgan obviously trying to keep it together. Hotch and Rossi spoke quietly in the other corner of the room. Probably about this case that had ultimately brought them all here. Just then he felt a hand on his arm. It was Emily. He looked at without saying anything.

"She's going to be okay Will." She said reassuringly. "JJ is one of the strongest people I know."

"I know you're right. I'm just…"

"Scared." She finished for him. "I am too. We all are."

Almost two hours later_… How could time be moving so impossibly slow right now?, Prentiss thought_. She looked at Will who was standing in the corner talking on his cell phone. Probably calling JJ's parents. Or maybe calling to check on Henry. Her heart went out to him. He and JJ weren't married, and if something did happen to her, who's to say he would even get custody of Henry? That's just how the system worked, as messed up as it sounded. Emily thought of JJ as the anchor to this team, and she knew that the others felt the same. She just had to be okay!

"Thanks again for picking Henry up Dee." Will said, talking to Henry's regular babysitter. "He always has fun when you guys get to hang out."

"It's no trouble at all Will!" She replied. "Just please keep me updated on what's happening. Do you want me to put Henry back on the phone for you? He's in his room playing now."

"No that's okay." Will shuffled his feet as he spoke. He always did that when he was nervous. "I just mainly wanted to hear his voice, and let him know why I couldn't pick him up today. I'll call you as soon as I know something."

Will hung up his phone and walked backed over to where the team was still gathered. Instead of sitting again, he began to pace. He was done waiting! Almost two hours since they took her into surgery, and they hadn't heard a word yet. The nurses were probably sick of him asking every fifteen minutes if they could tell him anything. He looked over at Garcia, who smiled back bravely at him. She motioned for him to sit next to her. He smiled at Henry's godmother and sat down.

"The waiting part is always the sucky part dear." Garcia held his hand tightly. "She's going to come back to us. I know it."

"Thanks Penelope." Will said. He was grateful for her support. All of their support. Even when Spencer started spouting off mindless medical facts, Will knew it was just his way dealing with what was happening. Just then he saw a doctor in scrubs approaching them. He jumped out of his seat, holding his breath.

"Jennifer Jareau?" The doctor as stopping in front of them.

"Yes!" They all practically shouted in unison.

"How is she?" Will demanded.

The doctor held up his hand to indicate to them all to stop talking at once. "Jennifer is stable now. She suffered a collapsed lung due to the bullet tearing through it, a lot of internal bleeding, and loss of blood to some major organs."

"But you're saying that she's going to be okay?" Will asked to make sure he was understanding everything the doctor was telling him.

The doctor nodded. "She will be sir. We stopped the bleeding, and are currently administering blood transfusions to bring her levels back up. "

"And her breathing?" Hotch asked.

"She is breathing on her own right now, and we removed the intubation tube." The doctor could hear them all breathing sighs of relief. Garcia starting crying again, this time tears of relief.

"I wanna see her." Will demanded.

"You'll be able to see her soon. She'll be in recovery for about half an hour, then we'll move her to a room in intensive care. Her condition is still serious. I'll have a nurse show you where to go once she's there."

Will nodded without saying anything. He was so relieved that he didn't trust himself not get too emotional in front of everyone. All he wanted to do is JJ with his own eyes.

"We're all glad that JJ is going to be okay Will." Rossi said to the young detective.

"If there's anything you need just let us know." Hotch chimed in.

"Thank you guys. I appreciate you all waiting with me." Will pulled his phone out of his pocket. He had to call Dee and let her know what was happening, and he wanted to say goodnight to Henry. He was wasn't leaving JJ's side until he knew for himself that she would be okay.

"We should stay here too." Garcia said once Will was out of earshot. "She needs to know that we're all here."

"I agree." Emily said.

"It's going to be the best for her psyche to know that the people she loves are here." Reid stated matter of factly.

"Then we stay." Morgan said. He nodded towards Will who was backing over to them.

"How's Henry?" Emily asked. Her eyes were full of concern.

"He's alright." Will drawled. "At least for now. I've got to sit down and explain to him why his mom isn't coming home tomorrow."

"Will if you need me to be there when you…" Garcia squeezed will's shoulder. She loved her godson and hated the thought of seeing him hurting.

"Yeah Will." Reid said. "And you need us to take him for the day tomorrow we will. I can take him to the museum. It's our favorite spot."

"That would be great. Thank you all again." Will was grateful to be surrounded by these people. He knew they loved JJ just as much as he did. He wouldn't even have this support system if not for her. He looked down the hospital corridor as a nurse seemed to be headed their way. He was at her side in just a few short strides.

"Jennifer Jareau?" She asked looking at him then back down at her chart.

"Can I see her now?" Will asked desperately.

"Of course sir. If you'll follow me I'll show you to her room." She looked at the others before continuing. "Will anyone else be joining you?"

"Will, go be with JJ." Emily said.

"Yeah, go on man." Morgan assured. "We'll be here for you both when she wakes up."

Will nodded his thanks and followed the nurse down the hallway. As they approached JJ's room, the nurse updated Will.

"She's not awake yet, due to the anesthesia. The invasiveness of the surgery required her to be heavily sedated." They stopped outside the door, and Will started to grow impatient. "You should talk to her. Let her know you're here." She smiled kindly at him.

"Don't be alarmed by the machines, and the beeping either. It's all just to make sure that her recovery is monitored."

"Thank you very much." Will said. He gently pushed the door open even though he knew there was no waking her up. There was instantly a lump in his throat as he slowly approached her bed.

"JJ…" He whispered. His heart started to break all over again when he looked down at his girlfriend. She looked like she was sleeping. He'd never seen her skin look so pale, and even though the nurse told him not to worry about the machines, they still made him extremely nervous.

He reached out and ran his hand over her blond hair. Reaching behind him, he pulled up a chair as close to the bed as he could get it. He sat down, holding her hand in his. He looked down at her hand in his and laughed to himself. JJ was the strongest person he knew, but now, holding her hand in his, she seemed so fragile. He brought that hand up to his lips. He kissed her softly, keeping her hand there, hoping she would give him a sign that she was still with him.

Will felt the tears start to roll down his cheeks. "JJ…" he choked back the sob threatening to overtake him. He had to be strong for her right now. "Baby I'm right here. Okay? Can you hear me cher?" He gently cupped her cheek in his hand.

"I need you. Henry and I, we both need you." He leaned forward and planted a kiss on her forehead. He looked down at her. Her breathing was deep and even. The machines beeped on time with her heartbeat. "The whole team is here right now."

He sat back down, never letting go of her hand. He couldn't let her go. "Please Jen…" He hesitated before going on. "Henry doesn't know what happened yet, and I need you to wake up so I can tell him that everything's going to be okay."

Will sat holding the hand of the love of his life. The mother of his son._ Everything has to be okay, Will thought. No matter what_…

**That's all for this chapter folks! Thanks for bearing with me as I try to figure out where this is going. I have a ton of different ideas.**

**And as always: Read, review and enjoy!**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Okay folks, after a bout with some writer's block, it's time to give you another chapter. My mind's been swirling with ideas on where to take this story. I hope you like it. **_

**Chapter 4**

Derek Morgan stretched out his long legs and rolled the kinks out of his neck. This had to be the longest day any of them could remember. And the hospital waiting room seemed like it was getting smaller and smaller by the minute. Turning to look out the window, he could that it was dark outside now. It was hard to believe that they had been working a case just this morning. Hotch was in the corner talking quietly on his cell phone. He was their unit chief, so everything team did, he had to make sure Strauss knew what was happening. He definitely didn't envy the guy right now.

Prentiss walked back into the waiting room with a tray of coffee for everyone. Garcia and Reid had gone to stay with Henry, and Will was glued to JJ's side in her room. She would take one to him too.

Morgan patted her on the knee. "Thanks for the coffee Emily."

"It's no problem. I feel like if I'll go crazy if I don't keep myself up and moving."

"One of us should probably try to check on JJ and Will." Rossi said coming over to sit with them and partake in some coffee.

"I'm on it." Emily said holding up an extra coffee and a bag of cafeteria food takeout. "I figured he could use coffee and something to eat at this point."

"Make sure you tell him that Henry's in good hands tonight with his Aunt Penelope and Uncle Spencer." Morgan said.

"I'll tell him." She said taking off down the hallway.

Meanwhile…_ Will was laughing. He, JJ, and Henry were having one of their rare family game nights. Tonight's game was "Simon Says..". JJ was Simon tonight. She always thought she could trip him up. _

"_Simon says hop on one foot." JJ instructed Will and Henry. They both hopped on one foot. Will knew this was the time where they usually let Henry win. He was three years old, so beating his parents in any game was everything to him._

"_Daddy you can't beat me!" Henry said laughing. "Mommy, tell daddy he can't beat me."_

"_You heard him, honey!" JJ said cracking up. "I think we know who the winner is going to be!" JJ paused for dramatic effect._

"_Come on mommy!" Henry yelled. "What does Simon say?"_

"_Simon says… Spin around once, touch your nose, and put one hand on your head!" JJ said breathlessly. She laughed hysterically as Henry did exactly what she told them to do, and Will, knowing Henry should win the fumbled while spinning then fell on to ground._

"_You're out daddy!" Henry yelled triumphantly. "Mommy, look at daddy! I win!"_

_Will and JJ laughed as Henry ran around the room cheering. _

"_That's your son." Will said to JJ shaking his head. "Crazy."_

_JJ caught Henry as he was doing a victory lap around the living room. "Okay buddy." She pulled him onto her lap. "You did a good job beating daddy."_

"_Yeah, little man." Will said ruffling Henry's hair._

"_It's almost bedtime, so do you think you can do just one more Simon Says?" JJ asked Henry._

_The little boy nodded, looking up at his mother expectantly_

"_Okay." JJ said. "Simon says pick up all your toys in your room, and get ready to put on pjs for bed."_

"_Mommy…" Henry did not like this Simon Says._

"_Hey buddy." Will said climbing to his feet. "Listen to your mom..uh….I mean Simon."_

"_Okay." The little boy said climbing out if his mom's lap. JJ kissed him on the head as he ran upstairs to his room._

_Will held out his hand, and JJ grabbed it, pulling herself from the floor._

"_Good game." She said._

"_What can I say?" Will said, smiling. "I love losing to that kid."_

_JJ gave Will a quick kiss on the lips then began cleaning up the snacks they had laid out for game night. She laughed as he held onto to her arm._

"_This mess isn't going to clean itself up Will." He wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. She felt his lips kiss her softly on the back of her neck. She gave up trying to clean and spun around in his arms to face him. "You're terrible."_

"_You love it." Will said, smirking as he leaned in to kiss her neck._

"_Will Henry is probably going to come back down here any minute." She closed her eyes as his lips worked magic on the sensitive spot just below her ear._

_Will stopped his attack on her neck to look JJ in the eye. "You know he's doing more playing with his toys rather than actually putting them away."_

_JJ let out a short laugh. "You're probably right." She pulled Will in close by his shirt. His arms were still around her._

"_So…?" Will asked leaning back so his face was out of her reach._

"_So kiss me." JJ said, now with one hand behind his head trying to draw him closer. When he laughed, still not giving in, she decided to change her method. "Simon Says kiss me." Her eyes were shining._

"_Well then I guess I must." Will said as their lips met in a lingering kiss. He pulled her closer to him, and JJ sighed as he ran his hand through her hair. Their lips parted just for a moment._

"_I love you Will." JJ said softly. They kissed again, deeper this time. JJ parted her mouth when she felt Will's tongue glide swiftly along her bottom lip. They breathed each other in as they kissed hungrily. Will was never as happy was he at this moment. He had a girlfriend whom he loved more and more every day, and a son upstairs that was just perfect. Who needs marriage when you have this? He thought._

"_I love you too." He whispered in between kisses._

_Will suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. That's weird, he thought. Who could possibly be touching his shoulder during this perfect moment?_

"Will…?" Emily touched Will's shoulder. He was sleeping; his head lay next to JJ on her hospital bed.

Will lifted his head from the bed, blinking his eyes confused. He smelled coffee. He looked up to see Emily standing beside him holding a cup along with a brown paper bag. "Emily…?" He looked back at JJ, who was still unconscious, and knew he had just been dreaming. He rubbed his hands over his face trying to clear the sleep from his brain.

"Are you okay?" she asked him. Her eyes were full of concern.

He nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm alright." He drawled. "Just dreaming is all."

"I wanted to check on JJ. And you too." She held out the coffee. "I also thought you could use this."

"Thanks." He said taking the coffee and food out of her hands.

Emily moved closer to JJ's bedside. She looked down at her friend. Her co-worker. Her teammate. JJ did look peaceful, but Emily would give anything to have her wake up so that they would all know she'd be okay.

"How's she doing?" Emily asked.

"The same." Will ran a hand through his hair. "Good. The doctors say she's pretty much stabilized."

"That's good news." She said. "Garcia and Reid are with Henry for the night. They're going to bring him in the morning."

"Okay." Will said looking at JJ. "Thanks again for the coffee and food."

"It's no trouble." She said, her gaze settling on JJ as well. Just as she was about to turn and leave, she thought she saw JJ move! "Will!" she said in a slightly elevated whisper. "I think she just moved her hand!"

Will whipped around, dropping the bag of food and coffee on the nightstand. "What? Oh my god!" He peered down at her and grasped her hand tightly. "JJ, honey can you hear me?" He scanned her entire body for any signs of motion. Emily stood by him, holding her breath.

"JJ, squeeze my hand if you can hear me." He squeezed her hand gently, waiting for her to squeeze back. The seconds ticked by, and then he felt it! "Did you see that?" He asked Prentiss.

"I'm going to go get a doctor!" She rushed out of the room.

JJ squeezed Will's hand again, and her head moved as she tried to open her eyes. "I'm right here." Will told her gently. "Come back to me."

JJ swallowed, her eyes opened slowly. "Will…?" She whispered. She looked tried to get a look at her surroundings. She noticed the pain right away. It seemed to be coming from everywhere.

Will held her hand and kissed her on the forehead. "Yeah, Jay, I'm right here." He watched her closely as she realized where she was.

JJ's throat hurt, and searing pain radiated through her entire body. "I'm in the hospital?" She was confused, and tears welled up in her eyes, spilling onto her cheeks. "Will it hurts…" She tried to sit up, but the pain stopped her from doing so. "I can't…"

"JJ, it's alright." He assured her. He was so glad she had finally woken up, but hated to see her in so much pain.

Just then the doctor came in. Emily, Hotch, Rossi, and Morgan hovered just inside the door. They held their breath while the doctor checked on JJ. The doctor quickly looked down at his chart then snapped it closed. Will moved only inches away from JJ so that he could get close enough to examine her.

"Jennifer welcome back to us." He smiled kindly down at her. A nurse came in to stand next to him. "You gave your family and colleagues quite a scare today."

"Please…" JJ croaked groggily. "What happened?" She looked at Will, her tear filled eyes held only pain and fear.

The doctor looked at Will, who nodded his head for him to continue then back down at JJ. "You suffered a serious injury this morning. You had surgery, but you are going to be okay."

JJ struggled to make sense of what was going on. She grabbed for Will's hand, and he squeezed it so she would know that he was there for her. She went through the haze in her mind, trying to piece what happened together. She felt tired, sick, and the pain was almost unbearable. She tried to take a deep breath to steady herself, but it hurt too much!

"It hurts!" she gasped. She closed her eyes briefly.

"I know. We're going to give you something for the pain." He stepped aside so the nurse could get to the IV in her arm. JJ nodded without saying anything. The nurse injected JJ's IV with morphine. "That should give you some relief within minutes." The doctor told JJ and Will.

The doctor was right. JJ's pain seemed to be subsiding, and her body relaxed more. "Will, what's going on?" Her voice had grown even more tired than before.

Will looked back at the others still gathered at the door. Taking a deep breath he looked back down at his girlfriend. It had been an extremely long day, and JJ had already been through so much. Did he really want to upset her by telling her that she had been shot? Rossi walked over to stand beside Will.

"Hey kiddo, " Rossi said. "You're a sight for sore eyes. You're going to be just fine."

"JJ, honey, just try to relax and get some rest." Will said. "The meds are going to help you sleep right now."

"Where's Henry?" Her eyelids drooped as the morphine took its hold on her. "Will…"

"Shh…" Will soothed as she fell into sleep. "Just rest cher."

"We'll beck back first thing Will." Hotch said. "If you need anything at all don't hesitate to call any of us." They all nodded in agreement.

"Thanks for staying with us all night." Will sat back down next to a sleeping JJ. "He would explain to her exactly what happened to her in the morning. He would explain it to Henry too.

"Henry, buddy it really is time for you to go to sleep now." Spencer pleaded with the stubborn three year old.

"Uncle Spence, I wanna wait for mommy and daddy!" Henry lay in his bed, where Reid and Garcia had put him four times now. Spencer was about to explain to Henry why he had to get some sleep, when Garcia walked back into the room. She was exhausted from chasing after her godson all night.

"Henry my little love!" She shooed Spencer off the bed so she could sit down. "We gotta get you to sleep sir. Remember, we have to get up and go see your mom and dad."

"Mommy and daddy at the doctor, right?" Henry asked.

"That's right. So we all need to try and get some sleep okay?"

"Aunt Pen, can you stay in here with me?" He looked up at her with the saddest eyes.

Garcia looked back at Spencer, who shrugged his shoulders. "Of course I will buddy. Make some room in there!" She gave him a nudge, indicating that he had to scoot over some.

"I'm going to take the guest room Garcia." Spencer said heading out of the room. "We'll be sure to call Will before we get there."

"Goodnight Uncle Spence!" Henry called.

Spencer smiled back at him. "Goodnight buddy."

Sunlight filtered in through the window of JJ's hospital room. Will had barely slept during what was considered the rest of the night. JJ had pretty much slept through the night. A nurse had to come in once to administer another round of pain meds. The doctor making rounds had checked in on her this morning. Her vitals looked good, and there was no sign of infection at the site of her surgery. Will sat in the chair that had become like an extension of himself over the last twenty four hours. He held JJ's hand, and felt her begin to stir.

JJ slowly opened her eyes. Until now she thought she had been dreaming. She wasn't though. She was still in the hospital bed she remembered waking up in last night. She was glad though, upon opening her eyes that Will was the first thing that came into her field of vision.

"Hey beautiful." Will said softly. "Good morning."

"Hey…" JJ grimaced in pain, but smiled bravely at Will.

"How bad is it?" He asked. "I can have the doctor come in if you're in too much pain." He started to raise out of his chair.

"No." she whispered. "Stay with me please. I just want you to stay with me."

Will nodded, sitting back down still holding her hand. "Alright." He said gently.

"Will, where's Henry?" She asked. "How did I end up in here?" JJ's eyes welled up with tears, and they threatened to spill over.

"He's with Spencer and Garcia." He gently pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. "They're bringing him over soon."

"JJ, yesterday, when you all were out on a case…" Will began. She looked up at him, hanging on his every word.

"Go on…" She pushed him to keep going.

"You were with Hotch and Reid talking to a suspect's sister." He squeezed her hand reassuringly. "It was supposed to be routine, so you all didn't wear your vests. He sighed before continuing.

"JJ another suspect that the team didn't know about surprised you at the house." He looked her right in the eye so she he she would know her was telling her the truth. "He had a gun, and because you matched the victimology of the woman in the case," Derek paused to take a deep breath. "JJ, he shot you."

JJ didn't say anything at first. She closed her eyes, as partial images of what happened yesterday peppered her still foggy memory. The pain in her stomach. The difficulty breathing. Feeling tired and weak. It all made sense. She opened her eyes to see Will looking down at her. His eyes were full of concern.

"JJ," he said. "You're going to be alright. I promise." He let a short laugh. "I won't lose you." He shook his head emphatically. "No way."

"Good to know." JJ said. She looked behind Will as Emily entered the room.

"Hey you guys." Emily said. "Can I come in?"

"Of course." Will said.

Emily walked over to them. "JJ we're so glad you're going to be okay. The whole team is outside."

"Everybody is here?" Will asked. HE knew that meant his son as well.

"Yeah they're just down the hall in the lounge."

"Okay." He kissed JJ on the forehead. "Jay I'll be right back okay? Emily will stay with you."

"Henry…?" JJ said.

"I'll go get him. I promise." He let go of her hand and walked out of the room.

Will walked down the hallway, and into the family waiting area. He spotted Henry playing with some toys with Morgan. He looked up when he saw him enter the room.

"Daddy!" Henry shouted running and jumping into Will's arms. Will squeezed his son tightly.

"Hey buddy. We missed you last night."

"I missed you too." Henry looked around the room, his dad still holding him. "Where's mommy?"

Will walked with Henry over to the couch so they could sit down. The others stayed close enough for support, but far enough away as to give father and son privacy.

"Listen buddy." Will started. "Yesterday when mommy was at work she had an accident."

"Did mommy fall down?" Henry asked.

Will smiled at his son's innocence. "Sort of. You know how me and mommy have jobs that can be a little scary for us sometimes, right?" Henry nodded, so Will continued.

"When mommy, Uncle Spencer, and Hotch were trying to catch a bad guy, another one came and hurt mommy." He pulled Henry close in his lap. "I know that you know mommy is strong like a superhero though. She's going to be good as new in no time."

Will's heart broke as Henry's eyes filled with tears at the thought of his mom being hurt. "Daddy I wanna go see mommy now."

"We're going to go see her buddy. We'll go right now." He stood up, holding Henry in his arms. "Mommy is feeling kind of tired right now, and we need to be brave for her okay?"

"Daddy!" Henry's voice got louder. I wanna see mommy now."

JJ's teammates looked at him sympathetically as he carried Henry out of the room. Will talked to Henry as he carried him down the hallway. "They're giving mommy medicine to help her feel better, and they have to make sure she's getting better." They stopped just short of the door. "We're gonna be brave for mommy, remember?"

Henry nodded, and Will slowly opened the door. He hoped they could all keep it together for Henry's sake! For JJ's too. _Here goes, Will thought…_

**Ahh folks, that's it for this chapter. The next one will focus on the Lamontagne=Jareau family and how they cope. Please review and I'll try to update soon!**


	5. Chapter 5

_**Thank you all for the reading and reviewing! I'm having fun writing this story.**_

_**As always, though, I don't own these characters…..**_

**Chapter 5**

"Do I look as horrible as I feel?" JJ asked. That searing pain in her abdomen was starting to come back full force.

"JJ you look fine!" Emily told her friend.

JJ squeezed her eyes shut as another wave of pain threatened to take over. She opened her eyes again when she felt Emily's hand on her shoulder.

"JJ, are you alright?" Emily asked with a hint of fear in her voice. She was prepared to run out of the room for the doctor.

"Em, I'm fine." JJ tried smiling through the obvious pain that she was in. She knew Will was on his way into the room with Henry.

"Okay." Prentiss said. "Just try to relax as best as you can."

Just then Will poked his head inside the door. He was holding Henry on his hip. "Hey, guess who's here to see his mom?" Will was doing his best to try and keep his voice light. He didn't want Henry to be scared seeing his mother laying in a hospital, and hooked up to machines.

"Mommy!" Henry squealed happily as his father carried him into the room.

"Hey buddy." JJ smiled at him. She was careful not to move too quickly though. That sharp pain was starting to get stronger by the minute.

Will walked with Henry over to the bed so he could be close to his mother. He looked down at his mom. His blue eyes were full of curiosity, concern, and fear.

"Mommy, daddy said you got hurt at work?" Henry asked.

JJ nodded and patted the spot next to her on the bed so Will could sit Henry down beside her. Will's eyes were also full of concern. "JJ, are you sure he should…?"

"Its okay Will put him down." Will put Henry down next to JJ on the bed.

"Be careful, okay buddy." Will told their son gently. "Remember mommy is here so she can get better fast."

Emily backed away from the Lamontagne-Jareau clan so they could be together as a family. "I'll leave you guys alone, okay?"

"Thanks Emily." Will called to her on her way out of the room.

Henry looked up at his mother then back down at her hand which held her IV.

"Mommy does it hurt?" He asked.

JJ stroked her son's hair, and nodded her head. "It does hurt, but you know what? " JJ held Henry's hand as she spoke. "I promise I'll be good as new very soon!"

"Mommy sure you'll be okay?" Henry asked worriedly.

"Yes, mommy will be okay bud." Will said, ruffling his hair.

Henry seemed to be satisfied with his parents' answers, and he went on to talk about how his Uncle Spencer promised to take him to the museum today. Will was only half listening as he looked at JJ with concern. She kept closing her eyes and wincing in pain. It was obvious that the pain meds were wearing off, and that she was no longer able to mask how much it hurt. Will was about to say something when Spencer knocked softly before walking into the room with Emily and Garcia.

"Is it okay if we come in?" Reid asked.

"Uncle Spence, we go to see the dinosaurs now?" Henry asked excitedly.

"Henry I am so ready to take you to the museum to see some dinosaurs." He replied walking up to give his godson a hi-five.

Will let out a short laugh at his son's exuberance. He was grateful that Reid had offered to take Henry for the day. He didn't want to have to leave JJ's side if he didn't have to. He was all too aware that she was probably going to feel worse before she started feeling better.

JJ smiled at Henry. "Have fun with your Uncle Spence okay buddy. You can tell me all about it when you get back."

"I will mommy." Henry reached out to Reid for him to pick him up off the bed.

Spencer let out a groan as Henry climbed up into his arms. "Wow little man, you are getting heavy!"

"He must weigh as much as you do now!" Garcia chided. Emily and Will chuckled but looked back down at JJ with concern.

Will cleared his throat, and Spencer took his cue on carrying the little boy out of the room. "You two make sure you behave!" Will said jokingly. "And I'll see you when you get back."

"Okay daddy." Henry said giving them all a thumbs up as they walked out of the room.

Will, Garcia, and Emily all looked down at JJ who now had her eyes closed again. Garcia touched Will's shoulder gently. "I'm going to go find a doctor or a nurse for her." She said.

"Thanks Garcia." Will said gratefully. He reached for JJ's hand and she opened her eyes at his touch.

"Is it that obvious?" She asked. Her voice was strained, and her eyes welled up with tears.

"I'm afraid so cher." Will told her.

Emily nodded her head in agreement. "JJ your body has been through so much in the last twenty-four hours. You're going to be in pain. Don't fight it."

JJ shook her head as a lone tear rolled down her cheek. Maybe she was in denial about what had happened, but she had it in her head that if she tried to stay strong, then maybe it wouldn't hurt as much. She was wrong, of course. She looked at Will and saw his eyes so full of love and concern. She also knew that he had to have been more scared than he's ever been when he heard that she'd been shot. _I was shot, JJ thought_. If she weren't lying in this hospital bed right now, she might not believe it. Will's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Garcia went to get someone who can give you something for the pain." He reached up to gently stroke her hair. "You know I can't stand to see you hurting like this."

Just then a nurse came in followed closely by Garcia. She wasn't the same nurse who had been coming in to check on JJ over the last twenty-four hours. That girl's shift must have ended. This nurse was more business-like. "I hear someone in here isn't feeling so hot." She said picking up JJ's chart and skimming its contents.

JJ nodded her head, because at this point even talking seemed to exert more energy than she actually had right now. She squeezed Will's hand as another wave of stabbing pain went through her body just from her breathing. The nurse pulled out a syringe, and reached for JJ's IV. "Honey this will help with the pain so you can relax okay?" She plunged the clear fluid from the needle, and Will watched as it traveled into JJ's hand. "I'll be back to check on her shortly." The nurse said before leaving the room.

"Is it any better Jay?" Garcia asked her friend. Her eyes were wide with concern.

"Getting there." JJ replied as her body seemed to visibly relax.

"Good." Emily said. She turned to Garcia and nodded towards the door. They both picked up their purses, getting ready to leave the couple alone. "You guys, we're going to go. We need to check in with Hotch, and you need your rest."

"That's right my love." Garcia agreed. "Let your man here watch you sleep for a while, and we'll see you soon."

"Thank you guys for checking on me." JJ said.

Will nodded his agreement. "Yeah thanks." He ran a hand through his short dark hair. "We'll see you all in a little while."

He turned back to JJ once they had left and closed the door. She had closed her eyes, and seemed to be drifting off. Will was glad. She had been brave and sucked up how much pain she was in so that their son could visit his mom. Still holding onto her hand, he sat down in the chair that was pretty much nailed to her bedside.

"I'm right here Jay." He said quietly. "Just rest."

"I love you Will." She whispered just before she fell into a deep sleep.

Will smiled at her now peaceful face. "I love you too." He whispered back to her.

…

Meanwhile… Emily and Garcia met Hotch and Morgan in the lounge.

"How is she doing?" Hotch asked in a serious tone. His eyes were full of concern.

"She holding her own, I think." Prentiss answered him. "She's on a lot of pain, but that's to be expected."

"Does she or Will need anything?" Moragn asked.

"We should make sure Henry stays occupied for them." Garcia chimed in. "When he and Reid get back from the museum JJ isn't going to be able to handle how excited he's going to be."

"She's right." Hitch said. "We should use this week that Strauss gave us off to be there for whatever JJ and Will need. That includes being there for Henry." They all expressed their agreement.

"Why don't we all meet back here in after lunch?" Morgan suggested. "None of us have barely slept in twenty-four hours."

"Okay." Prentiss said reluctantly. She didn't want to be gone too long in case something happened.

They were all exhausted, and they walked in silence to the elevator. It was all still so surreal. One of their own hurt like this! JJ was their rock. She was the one they went to when they needed comforting. She was the one always telling them everything was going to be alright. She needed them now more than ever. She may not know it yet, but she most likely had a long road of recovery ahead of her. They all just had to make sure that they were there for her. They had to make sure she was going to be okay. No matter what.

Will wasn't sure how long he had been watching JJ sleep. She literally hadn't moved since letting the morphine do its job in effectively putting her to sleep. He wondered if she remembered exactly what happened in the moments leading up to when she got shot. He knew that if she hadn't already, she would piece those moments back together. He wasn't sure if he wanted her to remember what was certainly a horrifying moment.

Looking at her face, Will was always stunned at how beautiful his girlfriend was. He smiled, remembering when they first met. He had called the BAU down to his hometown of New Orleans for a case. He had spoken to JJ on the phone prior to the team getting down there, but she wasn't at all what he had been expecting. He hadn't hid the fact that he was trying to flirt with her. Even while they were supposed to be focused on working the case! He had wanted to know everything about her right off the bat. Whether or not she was married, and if not, why.

She didn't want to admit it, but she he knew that she had been taken with him as well. She and her team had left New Orleans, but she hadn't left his heart. It was the same for her. They would call each other late at night and talk for hours. After a while she started flying down to see him almost every weekend. Before either one of them knew it, a year had gone by. They were in love. When she called him after working a stalker case in D.C. and told him she was pregnant he had been stunned. Happy, but stunned. He realized how much he loved her and wanted to be with her always. He even caught up to her when the team was working on a case in New York to let her know! He had wanted her to stop working in the field, because he thought her job was too dangerous. She had reminded him that they both had unconventional jobs, and that they needed to make decisions as a family. _A family, Will thought_. If anybody would've asked Will five years ago where he thought he'd be, it wouldn't be here. And now he couldn't imagine having any other life.

He and JJ had made their not so normal lives work. Their son Henry was everything to them. Will looked at JJ as she moved her head in her sleep. She was getting restless, and he wondered if she was dreaming. If she was, he hoped it was of all the times he was just remembering. He reached out and gently stroked her hair, and she relaxed her body again. He knew that eventually she was going to have deal with being home, and he was going to be there to help her every step of the way.

Will looked at the ring he wore on his finger. It was the same as JJ's. Henry's birthstone. He pulled her ring out of his pocket. The doctors had removed it from her finger before she went into surgery yesterday. They weren't technically married, but they both felt like they were. He had asked JJ to marry him several times when they found out about Henry. It was something she had never really seemed ready for though. Her parents had divorced after her older sister committed suicide when JJ was eleven. Of course most recently, he had asked her to marry him two nights ago. She brushed off the question like always, and he had been fine with that. Now Will wasn't so sure. Something like this happening makes you think twice about having your affairs in order. They both knew how the system worked. They saw it every day in their work. It was something will hadn't stopped thinking about since yesterday.

Will stood up so he could stretch his legs and back. He looked down at JJ as she began to stir. He reached for her hand, and she opened her eyes. She was groggy, but she smiled at him.

"Hey." She said softly.

"Hey yourself beautiful." He said back.

"How long was I out this time?" she asked.

"A few hours love." He said. "You needed that rest though. How do you feel?"

"Okay I guess." She bit her lip. "Could be worse, right?"

"Don't even think that." Will said squeezing her hand. "I told you before, I won't lose you Jen."

"Good, because I don't wanna be lost." She sat up little more in the bed and looked right into Will's eyes. "You must have been so scared." Her eyes began to fill with tears. "I can't imagine…" her voice trailed off.

"You're going to be fine Jay." Will's voice was soothing.

JJ felt so lucky to have Will. She knew that he would be there no matter what, and she there for him as well. She smiled at him through her tears, but her eyes held worry. "Will do you think Henry is okay?" she asked about their son.

"I think he will be." Will replied. "He's scared for you right now because he doesn't quite fully understand what's going on."

"He is a pretty tough kid." JJ commented.

"Just like his mom." Will confirmed smiling at her.

"Will they be back from the museum soon?" She asked. She was anxious to see Henry again. Now more than ever she wanted to be close to him.

Will nodded his head. "I talked to Reid a little while ago. They're going to meet Garcia, Hotch, and Jack for dinner. Apparently Uncle Spencer has promised our boy some ice cream. "

"Of course he did." JJ said smiling. "As long as he brings my boy back to me."

Just then there was a soft knock at the door. It opened slowly, and a female doctor walked in. She smiled at the couple as she picked up JJ's chart to read through it. "Hello you two, I'm Dr. Bowen, and I'm making the rounds this evening." JJ and Will smiled kindly at the doctor.

"How are you feeling Jennifer?" The doctor asked after reading the chart.

"Better I guess?" JJ hedged. "Not as bad as yesterday, obviously."

"Let's see shall we?" The doctor pulled her stethoscope from around her neck. "If it's okay, I'd like to do a quick exam."

JJ looked up at Will before responding. "Yeah it's fine." She said nodding her head.

"I'll make it quick." She said. "I promise. Just try and relax okay." She explained everything she was doing so JJ wouldn't be nervous. JJ tried to relax as the doctor listened to her heartbeat. She squeezed Will's hand out of reflex as the doctor checked on the gunshot wound which was also now the incision site for her emergency surgery. She braced herself for any pain she might feel, but the doctor was extremely careful not to disturb the area.

"How's my girl doing doc?" Will asked. He smiled down at JJ who had closed her eyes for the exam.

The doctor looked up from checking JJ's abdomen, and smiled at him. "She's doing great. The swelling has gone down, and there's no sign of infection." She pulled JJ's gown back down, and took off her examination gloves.

JJ opened her eyes in relief still holding onto Will's hand. "When can I get out of here?" She asked the obvious question.

"Let's see how you do over the next couple of days." The doctor answered. "We don't want to rush things."

"She's right honey." Will said agreeing with the doctor. "Best wait and see how the next couple of days go."

JJ leaned back in the bed. She still felt incredibly exhausted and waves of nausea would accompany the pain in her abdomen. The doctor left her alone with Will again, and he sat right next to her on the bed. She carefully positioned her body so she could lean her head on his chest. They sat on the bed together, in silence for just a few moments. JJ felt herself begin to tear up for what seemed like the millionth time in just a little over twenty-four hours. She felt Will gently stroking her hair.

"I got shot Will." JJ said quietly.

"I know Jennifer." Will whispered into her hair. "I know."

"What are we going to do?"

"We're going to get through this Jay. You're going to get better, and we're going to get through this."

"You promise?" she asked.

"Always." He replied.

He held her as she cried silently against his chest. He could feel her tears come through his shirt. He knew she was scared, and in pain, and that she didn't know what do to with all of this right now. So he held her.

"I love you so much JJ." He whispered. He hoped that they would be able to go soon. Will closed his eyes, and listened as JJ's breathing finally became slow and even. Her body succumbed to exhaustion without the help of morphine this time. Will wondered what the next few days would bring.

**Okay folks! There's another chapter down. Forgive me for updating so late. Life seems to always get in the way. Fear not, though because I have some great ideas on where all of this is going. Read, review, and enjoy!**


	6. Chapter 6

_**I'm not sure where this is going yet, but thank you to all who are reading and reviewing!**_

_**I don't own these characters…**_

**Chapter 6**

Will splashed cold water on his face, rinsing away the remainder of the shave gel he had used while shaving. Blinking, he looked at himself in the mirror. _Hospital bathrooms have the worst lighting, he thought. _He was on day four now of basically living in JJ's hospital room. The last twenty-four hours had proved more stressful and harrowing than Will ever imagined this whole ordeal could get. JJ had been on the road to a slow, yet steady recovery after waking up from being shot and having major surgery. Yesterday, though, JJ had been barely able to stay awake, and she was weaker than before. Then out of nowhere she spiked a fever.

Will had been so scared when she stopped talking to him mid-conversation, and the monitors she was hooked up to started beeping. He had yelled for anybody to please come help, and the doctor found out that she was having a bad reaction to the course of medication she was being given. They were able to get her stabilized, but she had been pretty much out of it since. Now it was the next morning, and JJ still wasn't awake. Will checked his reflection in the mirror, noting the dark circles around his eyes. Shaking his head, he walked out of the bathroom to stand beside his still sleeping girlfriend.

She looked so peaceful now after being so tired and restless the last day or so. The doctor had already been in for the morning on rounds. A nurse had come in to check her vitals, which were better now than they were yesterday. JJ's whole team from the BAU had also been in and out all day yesterday. Will had even allowed Dee, Henry's babysitter to bring him to see his mom just for a little while. The plan today was that is she was feeling alert enough when she woke up, they would take out the catheter and get her up and moving. If she did okay with being up, she might be able to go home tomorrow. Will knew that's what she wanted right now more than anything. He did too. The sight of JJ stirring brought him out of his thoughts. He leaned in to stroke her hair as she slowly opened her eyes.

"Hey." She whispered. The corner of her lips turned up into a smile at the sight of him.

"There's my girl." Will said. "You came back to me."

JJ nodded her head. "How long was I out for this time?" she asked.

"It's Thursday Jen." Will said with a gentle smile. "You were pretty much out of it all day yesterday."

"I definitely feel better now than I did before." JJ confirmed for him.

"Good. Everyone was here yesterday. Dee brought Henry to visit just for a while too."

"How is my baby boy?" JJ asked. Her voice was full of concern. "He must've been so scared that I wasn't awake for him!"

"He was scared at first, but we all explained to him what was happening as best we could."

"Where is he now?"

"He's with Garcia and Emily now. They stayed with him at our place."

There was a knock at the door, and the doctor poked her head in. "Do I hear somebody's awake in here?"

"Come on in doc." Will said.

"Well good morning Jennifer." The doctor greeted her patient. "You are a sight for sore eyes."

"Yeah I guess yesterday wasn't so good?"

The doctor shook her head pulling on the stethoscope around her neck. "No mam." She replied. "Not your best day. How do you feel today?"

"Better." JJ replied. "Not great, but better for sure."

Will held JJ's hand as he addressed the doctor. "What do you think doc?" he asked. "Any chance of me being able to take my girl home soon?"

"I would say there's a good chance, but we need to make sure everything checks out okay." She looked down at the chart she was holding. "I'm going to send in a nurse and one of our physical therapists."

"Okay." JJ said. "What's the plan?"

"We'll get you unhooked from most of these machines you've got going on here. Then we want to see how you do with standing and a bit of walking around." She closed her chart and continued. "Once we're sure that you're doing well and give you some home care instructions, you should be able to go home and recover. How does that sound?"

"Like music to my ears!" JJ answered quickly.

"Alright then, I'll go get the ball rolling." She smiled at the couple before exiting the room.

Will turned to look at JJ. "Sounds like you're going to get your wish Jay." He said with a twinkle in his eyes.

JJ looked up at him with confusion. "What wish was that? To get the hell out of this place?"

"No, for me to wait on you hand and foot."

"You are so not funny." JJ retorted. She smiled at the thought of going home soon. Even though she was obviously still in some pain, and she probably would be for a while to some degree, she honestly thought that the sooner she got home, the faster she would start healing!

An hour or so later after JJ had eaten breakfast and the nurse had come and unhooked her from everything except for the IV making sure she stayed hydrated; it was time the therapist to help her get up and moving. This was easier said than done since she had been confined to this bed since Monday. Will and she both looked up as young man came into the room.

"Hi there." The man said entering the room with a smile. He moved to shake JJ's right hand. Because she was shot in the upper left abdomen, she had some left sided weakness going on right now. "My name is Joe. I'm going to help you guys out with getting you up and moving so you can get out of here!"

"Sounds great." Will said.

The therapist focused his attention on JJ. He explained how they were all going to take things slow while focusing on her pain threshold. He didn't want her to do too much too soon. Once the three of them were on the same page, he moved the chair away from the bed so he could help JJ with sitting up. Will looked on with concern, ready to help at any given moment.

"Let's just get your legs so they hang off the bed." He watched as JJ slowly swung her legs around so that they hung off the edge of the bed. She closed her eyes briefly as pain threatened to take over. "Give yourself a minute, JJ." He said.

"Just take it slow honey." Will said.

JJ nodded her head and opened her eyes again. "I'm good." She looked up at her physical therapist. "What's next?"

"You're going to stand up slowly now." He said. "I want you to just hold onto my arm with your right hand, since it's the strongest."

JJ did as he instructed. She used her right hand to hold onto his arm, and slowly brought herself up off of the bed. She was a little wobbly, but it felt so good to not be lying down right now! She looked at Will and smiled. He looked so worried right now. She wanted to put his mind at ease.

"I'm okay Will." She let her body relax and tightened her grip on Joe's arm some to stabilize herself.

"You're doing great." Joe told her. "Let's try some walking around, okay?"

"Let's do it." JJ said nodding her head.

He held onto the rig carrying her IV as they began to walk across the room. Because he didn't want her to get too tired out, once she was okay with movement, they walked out of the room, to the nurses' station and back. JJ did okay, but she was definitely exhausted just from that short walk. And the pain in her abdomen was starting to get stronger by the minute. Once they were back in the room beside her bed, Will helped her sit down slowly.

"You did great, baby." He told her.

"He's right." Joe agreed. "I think you'll do alright at home."

"Thanks." JJ said. She grimaced in pain.

"Are you alright?" Will asked.

"I'm okay. It just took more out of me than I thought it would. And it hurts more too."

"That's normal." Joe told them both. "I'll get a nurse to get you something for the pain, and I'll make sure I update your doctor on your progress."

"Thanks." JJ and Will said in unison. They watched as he walked out of the room. Will turned back to JJ.

"Let me help you lie back in bed." He said. He eased her so she rested against the pillows and helped her swing her legs and feet back up. "You really did do great Jay."

"Being up and walking wasn't as bad as I thought it would be." She leaned back against the pillows and closed her eyes. "I think I can handle being at home to recover."

Will nodded his head in agreement. He hoped the doctor would release her so they could go home and be with Henry. He looked at his watch, and realized the morning had come and gone. He could expect the BAU gang to be coming by at any time now. He smiled at JJ as she made an effort to make herself comfortable on the bed without causing too much pain. Just then a nurse came in holding a small plastic cup with two pills.

She handed it over to JJ. "This will help with the pain dear." She said before double checking JJ's IV then turning to leave. _No more morphine through a needle. Sweet, JJ thought. _That had to be good sign.

There was another knock at the door. This time it was Garcia and Prentiss who poked their heads in. "Hey can we come in?" Garcia asked.

"Of course." JJ said to her friends. "How are you ladies?

"We should be asking you that!" Emily said with a laugh. "We were here yesterday, but you were kind of out of it."

Garcia touched JJ's shoulder and looked down at her, eyes full of concern. "How's the most gorgeous blond in the FBI doing today?"

JJ and Will both had to chuckle at Garcia's question. She could make anyone smile with her biting wit. "I'm feeling better. I promise."

"You ladies just missed her not only being up, but walking around too!" Will told them.

"JJ that's great!" Emily exclaimed.

Garcia agreed. "Does that mean we get to take you home soon?"

"I sure hope so." JJ said. She looked up at Will. "He's getting sick of living in this place."

"Hey anywhere you are is where I want to be." He replied.

"Good answer." Prentiss said grinning at the couple.

"So the boys will be in to visit later." Garcia said filling them in on the day's events. "Our boy genius is going to bring your boy Henry over in a little while as well."

"Good." JJ said. "I need to see him."

"And see him you shall!"

Will excused himself from the room so JJ could talk with her girlfriends. He wandered down the hallway and tried to relax his mind and his body. Four days of being here was starting to get to him. He didn't want to let JJ see that though. She might be feeling better, but she had a long way to go before things were going to be normal again. And he was still scared to death for her. JJ was a very physical person in her job and at home. Was she going to be able to cope with what may end up being a slow and sometimes painful recovery? Just then JJ's doctor walking his way caught his attention.

"Will, taking a break I see." She said smiling kindly at him.

"Yeah, JJ is with her girlfriends right now." He looked down at his feet. "I figured they could use the time to chat. "

"You're probably right.

"So did the therapist talk to you yet?" Will asked?

"He did." She said nodding. "And I'm happy to report that JJ may go home tomorrow morning."

"That's great doc!" Will exclaimed. Relief was evident in his voice. "Can we go tell her now?"

"Of course." They headed back towards JJ's room.

"Hey can we crash this party?" Will asked walking with the doctor back into the room.

Emily and Garcia went to gather their purses. "We can leave you guys alone if…" Prentiss' voice trailed off as Will held up his hand to them.

"Y'all are welcome to stay if you like. " He looked at JJ and reached for her hand. "The doctor has good news honey."

JJ smiled back at Will. Partly because she was happy that her friends were here. Partly because the meds were doing their job in curbing some if the pain she was in. And partly because she thought she already knew what the good news was.

"I reviewed your chart, checked with the assessment the therapist gave me, and I don't see any reason why you can't go home tomorrow morning."

JJ breathed a sigh of relief, while Will was still grinning. Penelope let out a squeal of delight, and Prentiss was beaming.

"We'll monitor you for the rest of the day, and give you all the home care instructions you two will need."

"You have no idea how good that is to here." JJ said.

"I thought that might be a mood lifter." The doctor said. "I'll leave you folks to celebrate." She left the room, and they breathed a sigh of relief.

JJ looked at Will and her two friends. She was finally going home! A small shiver ran up her spine as her mind flashed briefly to what happened to her in Monday. The image of being shot was something that would stay with her for a long time. She knew that. JJ shook her head to clear out any negative thoughts. This was a happy moment. She was going home to her two guys, and she would be okay.

No matter what…

_**Okay folks that's all for this chapter. I'm sorry if it was boring, but I needed to set things up for what's to come! I thank you again for reading and reviewing. I'll update soon!**_


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

**Thanks for sticking with the story gang! I don't own Criminal Minds…**

JJ watched as Will packed what few things she had into a duffle bag. It was Friday, and she was going home. The doctor and nurse had to come in to check her again, before rattling off numerous directions about home care and re-cooperating. JJ closed her eyes for just a moment as Monday morning flashed through her head. She had been with Hotch and Reid when it happened. Everything about being shot that day was starting to be the only she thought about these last few days. She shook her head, as if trying to make those memories tumble out of her head. Her eyes were still closed when she felt Will's lips gently kiss her cheek.

"You alright?" She looked up into his brown eyes, and saw they were full of concern.

JJ opened her eyes and smiled at him. "Yeah I'm fine." She didn't want him to worry about her. "Just a little tired is all."

"No worries love." He said. "When we get you home you will be doing nothing but resting!"

"I can't wait to sleep in our bed instead of this thing." She said gesturing to the hospital bed she had been attached to for the last four days. "And I can't wait to be at home with you and Henry."

"He's pretty excited to have his mom home."

"Yeah after being spoiled by the whole team these last few days."

Will zipped up JJ's bag and sat it next to the bed. He and the nurse had helped JJ change into a loose fitting t-shirt and lounge pants. Because she still couldn't reach up with her left arm, Will brushed her hair and pulled it back into a ponytail for her. She kept telling him that surely she must look a mess from being stuck here for the last few days. Will looked down at her and smiled. Her eyes got him every time. She was gorgeous no matter what, and she didn't even know it. He reached out and caressed her cheek.

"I can't wait to get you home and get you better."

"You're going to be like the best male nurse ever." JJ said smiling back at him.

"Much better than the tool who kept drooling all over you last night."

"Ooh jealous?" JJ chided him.

"Not jealous honey." Will corrected her. "It just took him a little longer than necessary to check your pulse is all I'm saying."

JJ squeezed Will's hand reassuringly. Will had that New Orleans fire in him, and she loved it. Will had always had a jealous streak in him when it came to other guys getting into her personal space. She was the same way. Even before they were officially together JJ had gotten jealous when another woman bought him a drink at the bar! She tugged lightly on his hand with her right hand. He sat down next to her gently, as to not jostle her on the bed. He knew that if she moved too much, she would be in a great deal of pain.

"Come here." She whispered to him. Will smiled, and leaned in close until their lips were less than an inch apart. "I love you." She said just before their lips connected in a sweet kiss.

Will reached his hand and it snaked up her face to hold her to him. Every time they kissed Will felt a like a jolt of electricity was being shot through him. He broke the kiss after a few seconds knowing that if she breathed too hard, she would be in pain.

"I miss that." JJ said when Will gently pulled away.

"Me too cher."

Just then a nurse came in with a wheelchair. _It's time, JJ thought_. She took a breath to steady her herself. She felt nervous, but couldn't understand why. This is what she'd been waiting for!

"Who's ready to get out of here?" The nurse asked. She stopped the chair in front of JJ and put the brake on.

"That's your ride, honey," Will said.

"Let's do this." JJ said. She put out a hand so the nurse and Will could guide her from the bed and down into the chair. JJ grimaced as a stab of pain shot through her abdomen.

Will crouched down beside her. "Are you okay?" He asked his eyes full of concern.

"It's fine Will." JJ said. When he didn't move from her side she added, "I'm good. Let's get out of here."

The nurse stepped aside so Will could push JJ in the wheelchair. They went out of the room, down the elevator, and out to the main entrance. Will left JJ with the nurse so he could pull the car around. Once he parked and opened the door, he and the nurse helped JJ stand up so she could lower herself into the front seat of Will's Camaro. Once she was settled he shut the door and thanked the nurse for her help. He slid behind the wheel and looked over at his girlfriend.

"You ready to go home babe?"

"Let's go home Will."

"I still say we should've put more balloons up." Garcia said commented on the lack of decorations in JJ and Will's house.

"JJ said she didn't want us to make a big deal out of her coming home."

"But just a Welcome Home banner just doesn't seem to do it!"

Morgan laughed. "Baby girl don't sweat it." He slung his arm around her shoulder. "JJ is the one who's hurt. What she says goes."

Just then Reid came in carrying Henry on his hip, Hotch and Rossi in tow. The team had gathered to be here when Will brought JJ home. They were so happy, and wanted to show her how much she meant to all of them.

"When mommy and daddy get home?" Henry asked anyone who would answer.

Rossi knelt down next to Henry who had just climbed out of Reid's arms and onto a kitchen stool. "They're on their way right now, partner." He ruffled the boy's blond hair.

"Mommy got hurt, but she is okay?" he asked.

"Your mom is like a super hero remember." Garcia told him sitting down next to her godson. "Mommy will be leaping tall buildings in a single bound in no time!"

Hotch watched his team interact with JJ and Will's son. He was glad everyone had come together to help is newest profiler. JJ has been part of this BAU family for just about seven years now. Hotch frowned, thinking of his part in JJ getting shot. He had been wrestling with guilt for five days now. If only he had been a little faster in getting off the shot. He shook his head at the memory of seeing so much blood coming from a gunshot wound that could have been prevented. Hotch's thought were interrupted by a hand on his shoulder. It was Prentiss.

"I think I know that look Hotch." She said quietly.

"What look is that?"

"The look you get when you feel like you've tried your best at protecting someone close to you, and you didn't protect quite enough."

"Are you profiling me now?"

Emily shook her head. "Just a friendly observation." She looked at Henry playing with Morgan, Garcia, and Reid. "You couldn't have prevented what happened to JJ."

"No?" he asked.

"No." Rossi said coming to stand beside the pair. "I know more than Emily, Hotch. Take it from me."

"Of course." Hotch answered with a hint of doubt. Doubt in himself.

Just then Emily's phone buzzed. She looked and saw it was Will. He had said that he would call when they got home. JJ would need helping getting from the car to the house.

"We'll be right out." She said before hanging up.

"You hear that bud?" Reid asked "Your mom and dad are home."

Henry jumped into his godfather's arms and squealed with excitement. "Aunt Pen, mommy and daddy home!"

"That's right little man!"

Morgan and Emily went outside to meet them at the car. Morgan opened the passenger side door while Will climbed out of the driver's seat. He crouched down so he could look at JJ.

"Hey beautiful." He greeted her.

"Hey handsome." She replied playfully.

"Hey now…." Will said walking around to their side of the car. He handed Prentiss JJ's duffle bag, and he and Will reached to help JJ stand up out of the car. Emily cringed at the sight of JJ squeezing her eyes shut and biting her bottom lip from the obvious pain getting out of the car was causing. Her heart went out to her friend.

"JJ, are you okay?" She asked the blond.

JJ nodded her head without saying anything. She held onto Will's arm while Derek lightly held onto her left arm. They took a break once she was up and standing.

"You know JJ I could just carry you into the house." Morgan said pointedly. Will shook his head at JJ's teammate's gesture. Morgan was the prince charming for the ladies on the team, no doubt.

"I'm good Derek, but you're a prince for offering."

"Are you okay to walk into the house?" Will asked. "We can take a break once we get inside, and you can lie down on the couch for a bit."

"Sounds like a good plan." JJ said.

They all headed into the house. Prentiss walked behind them to put her mind at ease. She needed to see JJ make it into the house. Morgan opened the front door, and JJ could see down the hallway and into the kitchen. Her eyes lit up when Reid carried Henry over to her.

"Mommy you home!" Henry cried. "You feel better now mommy?"

JJ smiled at her son. "I do now that I'm home with my boys!"

Reid let Henry lean over so JJ could give him a kiss on the cheek. She blinked back tears that threatened to spill over. She felt so lucky to have all these people around her. Supporting her. Morgan and Will guided her into the living room. JJ saw the welcome home banner hanging up.

"You guys are great." She leaned into Will a little as she felt gravity start to take over, and the pain start to throb deep in her chest and abdomen.

"We're just glad you're back home dear." Rossi said.

"And we're all just a phone call away if you need us kitten." Garcia reaffirmed. "For you too my dear detective." She added rubbing Will's shoulder.

"Here, let's get you sitting." Morgan said. He monitored while Will eased her into a reclined position on the couch. JJ closed her eyes and leaned her head back, clearly exhausted.

"We should go." Hotch told the group in a quiet yet stern voice.

"Mommy Uncle Spence got me a new toy!" Henry told his mom. He stood beside her as she lay on the couch. She opened her eyes at the sound of her son's voice.

"That was nice of your Uncle Spence honey."

Reid stepped up to stand beside Henry. "Hey bud, you wanna go upstairs and play with your new toys?"

"Yeah!" Henry looked back at his mom, then up to his dad who stood over them. Will nodded his head.

"It's alright son, go on." He ruffled the boy's longish blond hair. "I'll keep an eye on mommy."

"Come on." Reid hoisted Henry up, and they went upstairs to his room.

The others made their way to the front door after telling Will and JJ that they would be checking in soon. Hotch stayed behind and knelt beside JJ where she lay on the couch.

"What's up Hotch?" JJ asked him, seeing the look of worry in his eyes.

"I just wanted to tell you how sorry I am." He hung his head briefly, avoiding eye contact. "I don't know how I could've let this happen."

"What?" JJ asked in shock. "Hotch, you didn't _let_ this happen. It just happened."

Hotch shook his head. "JJ if I wouldn't have…" he stopped talking as JJ held up her hand to silence him.

"Hotch, it happened."

He knew best than to argue with her. "I'm glad that you're home and that you're going to be okay."

He stood up as Will came back into the room. He reached out to shake the young detective's hand.

"Will of you guys need anything just call. Strauss has us back in on Monday, but you can reach any one of us whenever."

"Thanks Hotch." Will said. He started to walk the agent to the front door, but Hotch held up his hand.

"Stay with her." He gestured towards JJ who had her eyes closed again. "I can show myself out."

Will heard the front door close, and he heard the faint sounds of Spencer upstairs playing with Henry. He was grateful his son to have a nice distraction. Will looked down at JJ on the couch. It was going to be time for her to take her pain meds soon. He kneeled down beside her and reached for her hand. JJ opened her eyes and smiled at his touch.

"What did I tell you about watching me sleep?" JJ joked, but her voice was strained.

"I can't help it cher." He kissed her sweetly on the cheek. "You're just so damn cute."

"Spence is with Henry?" She asked.

"They're playing in his room."

"So he's okay?" she asked.

"He's fine JJ." He gently rubbed her arm. "Can I take you upstairs? I think you'll be more comfortable in our bed."

JJ nodded. "That would be great Will. I think walking wouldn't be so good right now."

Will gently got his arms underneath her body and effortlessly lifted her from the couch. He could feel her body tense up in his arms. "Are you alright?"

"I'm good. I promise."

Will walked slowly with JJ in his arms. He went up the stairs and down the hall to their room. Once inside, he placed her gently on the bed. He propped up the pillows so she could recline, and placed a light blanket over her body.

"I'm going to run downstairs and get your meds, and then you can get some sleep."

A few minutes later Will was back at JJ's side.

"I checked in on Reid and Henry." He handed over a hydramorphone for her to take with some water. "He offered to stay since it's your first night back home. Henry was so excited I couldn't say no."

"That was cool of Spence." JJ said taking the pill from Will and downing it with one gulp of water.

"They're going to go grab a bite then they'll be back. Use the downtime time to rest!" Will went to stand up off the bed, but JJ tugged on his arm holding him back.

"Can you just lay with me here for a little while?" She asked.

"You bet I can." Will leaned back on the pile of pillows, and JJ rested her head on his chest.

JJ sighed taking in the scent of Will's aftershave. She closed her eyes, feeling his fingers run up and down her arm. _Wow that pill works fast, JJ thought as her eyelids became too heavy to stay open_. JJ was just starting to fall into a deep slumber when an image of Alan Jennings wielding a gun flashed through her mind. Then the gun went off, and everything went black…

Will felt JJ flinch and looked down at her. She had been falling asleep, but now she opened her eyes again.

"Hey what's up?" He gave her a worried look.

JJ bit her lip. She didn't want Will to worry about her having flashbacks of getting shot.

"JJ…?"

"It's nothing Will." JJ said. "I'm sorry, I'm just…" her voice trailed off.

Will looked into her blue eyes. She wasn't telling him something, but he didn't want to press the issue considering the situation. He squeezed her hand to let her know that he was there for her, and she squeezed back in acknowledgement. The squeezing of the hands was like code for them. Will leaned down and kissed her softly on the lips.

"What was that for?" JJ asked.

"That was because I love you, and I'm glad you're home." He leaned back and held her. "Rest, Jennifer."

"Resting…" her voice trailed off on sleep. She pushed any thoughts of Monday's events out of her head. She felt Will's heart beating and it soothed her. Soon she drifted off.

Will looked down at JJ and listened to her quiet, even, deep breathing. He was worried for her. He worried that she was holding back what she was feeling. He worried that she would try to do too much too soon. He was just worried. But for now he would just be there for her. He would help her face whatever she was feeling when she was ready. Will sat in the silence of their bedroom holding onto his girlfriend. He knew he would always be there for this woman that he loved.

No matter what.

**That's it for chapter 7 folks. Don't forget to read and review!**


	8. Chapter 8

_**I'm going to try and focus more on my favorite couple now that JJ is home. It'll still have some team stuff though. Hope you enjoy! And thanks for all the reviews and feedback!**_

**Chapter 8 **

Will stood on the kitchen trying to get the dishes put away and the table cleaned up. It was almost noon on Monday, and it had already been a busy morning. Dee had come over to pick up Henry for pre-school, and he had made breakfast for them. Also, JJ's physical therapist had been by to show her some exercises she should be doing to build the strength on her left side back up.

JJ had been released on Friday, and they had made it through the weekend okay. She seemed to move with less pain, and had definitely gotten most of her color back! He still worried, though because she was restless at night, and she sometimes would get this far away look on her face. Every time he asked if she was okay, or if she needed anything she would say no, and that she was fine. Will knew it that she was showing classic signs of Post-traumatic Stress Syndrome, or PTSD. It happened to people all the time in their line of work. He just wasn't sure about how to broach the subject to her.

Will finished up in the kitchen and headed upstairs to their bedroom. JJ had joined them for breakfast, but he had insisted she go up and get some rest after therapy. And she was clearly exhausted from the morning activities. Will opened the door as quietly as he could, as to not disturb her. He was surprised to see that not only was she not asleep, but that she was up and standing at her bureau going through a drawer.

"Hey you're up."

"I'm up." She said turning around to face him.

"How are you feeling?"

JJ sighed but smiled at Will. "I'm okay. I needed that nap."

Will walked over to stand next to her and gave her a soft kiss on the cheek. Now wasn't the time to bring up her showing signs of PTSD.

"You feel up to letting me help you shower?"

"I don't know…" Her voice trailed off.

Will pulled her to him, rubbing her arm. When she was in the hospital the nurses had taken care of all the changing of the clothes, bandages, and over all daily bath or shower routines. He wanted to put her mind at ease that she was safe with him, and that he didn't care about any kind of scars.

"Babe a shower will make you feel much better. And you don't have to worry about anything." He smiled down at her. "I'll do all the work."

"I know Will, it's just…"

"JJ you have to know that I don't care what your scar looks like." He wiped away a tear before it could fall down her cheek. "Come on."

JJ nodded and let Will take her gently in his arms. She was so lucky to have him. Even though a week had gone by since being shot everything was still so fresh in her mind. She relived that moment every time she closed her eyes. Sometimes even when she was awake! She knew Will was just trying to be there for her.

"Let's gather up what we need and we'll get you into the shower." He went to the linen closet and retrieved a fresh towel. "Everything else we should have in the bathroom cabinet."

They walked into their master bathroom and JJ turned to face Will. She looked up into Will's BLUE eyes, and thought she saw a familiar spark there.

"What?" He asked smiling down at her.

"I know that look Will." She bit her lip, shaking her head. "No funny business."

Will held up his right hand. "No funny business." He repeated back to her. He turned around and started the shower. "I won't make it too hot. The water I mean."

Once the shower was running, and at a temp he thought she could handle, he turned to help her undress.

"Alright honey, let's get the hard part out of the way, and start with your shirt." She was looking down, and he put a finger under her chin to draw her eyes up to look into his. "It's me Jay. You're fine."

"I know, I'm sorry. " She tried to smile bravely at him.

Will held her shirt while she pulled her right arm out of its sleeve. He pulled the shirt over her head and was able to slip it down her left arm so she didn't have to move it as much. He still couldn't help but be blown away at how hot her body was. His eyes landed on the dressing covering up where she had been shot, and where they had opened her up for surgery. He let his eyes along with his hand travel up her body. She wasn't wearing a bra. He looked right into her eyes, and his hand rested gently on her hip.

"You have no idea how much I miss this body." He said. She blushed, but was able to at least let out a short laugh at his candidness.

"Okay." He said. "It's pants dropping time babe. We're wasting water."

JJ shook her head but stepped out of her sweats and panties once he pulled them down over her hips and below her knees. She looked at him and smiled.

"Your turn." She said simply.

Will smirked while shucking off his clothes. Everything except his boxers, that is. "I gotta have a buffer between us JJ." He explained.

"Understood." She said biting back a smile.

Will helped JJ step inside the shower, and he followed behind her. JJ could feel her muscles relax instantly under the hot water. Will was right. She already felt better. Will smiled seeing that she seemed to be enjoying being under the gentle spray of the water.

"You good?" he asked her. JJ nodded, and Will grabbed her shower gel off the shelf. He gently washed her body, and rinsed her off. Next came her hair. He stood so that he was almost behind the spray, and had her stand with her back to him so she could lean her head back into the water. Will couldn't keep his eyes from traveling up her body. He shook his head. She had an ass that just wouldn't quit.

Will lathered her hair with shampoo, and massaged it into her hair. He rinsed it out, and applied some conditioner. The smell was almost intoxicating. Will loved the way she smelled. Once he was sure that her hair and body were fully rinsed, shut the water off. He held onto her hand as he stepped out of the tub, his boxers dripping, and him sporting a semi-hard on. He chose to ignore it, and hoped that she would too. She didn't, of course.

"Wow Will." She said looking down at his crotch and shaking her head. "Really?"

Will ignored her remark. "Let's get you dried off and change that bandage."

Will quickly wrapped a towel around his waist, and draped a towel around JJ's shoulders so she wouldn't be cold. He used another one to dry the rest of her body. He grabbed the pair of her underwear that he had brought form her drawer and held them out so she could step into them. He let his hands linger on her hips once he had them pulled up. He moved them to the wet bandage covering up the incision site. He stopped when he saw her body stiffen up.

"It's okay JJ." He said gently. "I'll be quick. I just need to get this changed, and make sure it looks okay." He had to be sure it wasn't red and swollen or anything.

"I'm sorry." JJ said lowering her eyes. "I'm just… Go ahead."

"Okay." He said nodding his head. He peeled the bandage off with little effort considering it was all wet. It didn't look bad. And it appeared to be healing okay. "Does it hurt much Jay?" He asked her.

He dried the area, and put a fresh dressing on it. They walked back into their bedroom, and he helped her into a pair of fresh lounge pants and a long sleeved t-shirt. Will helped her onto the bed so she could lean back against the pillows. Once she was comfortable, he turned so he could put some dry clothes on. She reached for his hand, stopping him in his tracks.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Nothing. I just…" She squeezed his hand. "Thank you." She said simply.

Will smiled down at her, shaking his head. "That's what I'm here for JJ." He looked down at himself wearing a towel with wet boxers underneath. "I'm going to put some clothes on. What do say we lay in bed together and watch some bad daytime TV?"

"That sounds great." She replied.

Will threw on some clean clothes and walked back over to her on the bed.

"How about something to eat?" he asked her. "You haven't eaten since breakfast."

"I'll have whatever you're having."

Will ran down to the kitchen to make soup and sandwiches for them.

Meanwhile… JJ closed her eyes briefly. She did feel better after showering and having her hair washed. Will was so good to her! Just then her phone started buzzing. Picking it up she saw it was Garcia calling. She smiled, thinking about how great the whole team had been through this. She answered on the third ring.

"Hey."

"Hey my flower, how are you!" Garcia always sounded so animated, that JJ couldn't help but laugh.

"Hey Pen. I'm good."

I just wanna make sure Will is taking care of my best girl!"

"He is." JJ said grinning. "So I guess you all are back to business today, huh?"

"You know it!"

"Wheels up in thirty, right?"

"Something like that." Garcia sighed dramatically. "You guys are always jetting off and leaving me behind."

"Don't worry, when I come back to work, I imagine I'll be getting left behind too. At least for a little while."

"Well I have to tell you, you sound better than you did yesterday."

"Yeah, I'm getting there Pen.

"That's what I wanna hear!" Garcia exclaimed. "Listen JJ, I've got to get back to my screens, but I'll check in on you later."

"Thanks for calling Garcia. I'll see you soon."

"Of course my vision. Garcia, out!"

JJ hung up the phone just as Will came back into the room carrying a tray of food.

"Who was on the phone?" he asked.

"Just Garcia calling to check in."

"That's nice." Will said. He waited while JJ adjusted herself into more of a sitting position. "I've got wedding soup and sandwiches." He announced with a flourish.

"Smells good." JJ was starting to get her appetite back. Today would be the first time she ate more than one meal in a day since the shooting.

Will arranged everything picnic style on the bed and sat down next to his girlfriend. He handed her a can of Sprite, and they dug into their lunch.

"Remember when we went on a picnic when we first started dating?" Will laughed. "You flew all the way down to New Orleans to discover that I had no idea what one actually brought to a picnic!"

"You were a mess." JJ agreed. "But you were so sweet."

"I felt worse when it started to rain."

"An umbrella is definitely a good thing to have as a just in case we need this type of thing."

"JJ I couldn't think straight around you darlin'!" he said between bites of food. "Hell, I still can't think straight around you half the time!"

"Look at us now…" JJ's voice trailed off.

Will brought her hand up to his lips and kissed it. "You're perfect." He murmured.

"You're funny." JJ replied. "But thank you, anyway."

Once the couple finished eating Will gathered everything up on the tray and ran it downstairs to the kitchen. He looked at his watch, noting the time. Dee would have Henry back in just a couple of hours. He walked back to their bedroom and stopped, leaning against the door frame. JJ had resumed her reclined position and closed her eyes. He walked into the room and sat down at her side.

"Hey you." She said sleepily.

"JJ you really are doing great." He reached over to brush a strand of her soft hair out of her face. "You know that right?"

"It's just…" she pause before continuing. She looked into his deep blue eyes. "It's hard sometimes Will."

"I know cher." He told her gently. "That's where I come in."

"I know."

Will leaned down and kissed her lips. It was a gentle kiss, and then he felt JJ respond to his touch. JJ reached up to grab a hold of the back of Will's head, trying to draw him in closer. Will held himself at a distance from JJ as she tried to pull him to her. His body ached for her, but they both knew she was nowhere near close to being ready for physical contact. He could hear her breath start to come in and out faster as their lips remained attached. _Stop it! Will screamed to himself. She's not ready._

Will pulled out of JJ's grasp, and watched as her eyes remained closed. She tried to steady her breathing. He scanned her face, looking for a sign of if she was hurt or not.

"JJ…" he whispered running his hand along her arm "Hey."

She opened her eyes up at his touch. "I'm sorry Will." She laced her fingers through his with her left hand. "I just miss you. I miss us being close like that."

"Me too." He smiled ruefully. "Let's focus on getting you better, and then we can focus on getting close like that."

JJ nodded her head. "Deal."

"Now" Will said laying leaning back next to her on the pillows. "How about that bad daytime TV we were going to watch?"

"Ooh, you asked for it!"

Will smiled as she started flipping the channels. Maybe she was really going to be okay after all. He was glad they had this time alone to just sit with each other. He hoped there would be more times like this. He knew she would most likely have her ups and downs, but for now she seemed okay. He would do everything in his power to help through all of it. No matter what.

_**Okay, that's all for now. I'll be updating soon! Hope you liked this chapter. Remember to review please!**_


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys I'm back! Sorry for it being so long since I updated. Life got in the way, and I was still in a state of shock after the season finale. I got lazy with this chapter but have some good ideas coming very soon!Anyways… here you go.**

**Chapter 9**

**No Matter What**

JJ stood at the bathroom sink and splashed cold water on her face. She blinked her eyes looking at her reflection in the mirror. Her eyes were red due to lack of sleep. It was Wednesday morning. Exactly nine days since she'd been shot. Her body was healing, but as the days went by, JJ was starting to realize that her mental state of being might not be all good. She had nightmares, woke up in cold sweats, and couldn't seem to focus. She was pretty sure Will could tell even though he didn't say anything. He was worried for her, and always asked if she was okay. She was surprised he'd left her this morning to go drop Henry off at pre-school. He didn't like leaving her out of his sight.

Sighing JJ walked back into their bedroom. She sat down slowly on the bed, and closed her eyes just as a quick shot of pain ran through her midsection. The pain she felt was lessening every day, and she was grateful for that. She had spoken to Emily on the phone last night. The team was on a case in Vermont right now. JJ was beginning to grow restless being at home all day. She knew when she went back to work though, she would be on desk duty for a while. JJ was pulled out of her thought by the sound of the front door opening. Will was home. She smiled as he walked into the room.

"Hey." She said.

"Hey you." He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. He very quickly looked her up and down. "Are you still feeling alright this morning?"

"I'm alright."

"Yeah?"

JJ bit her lip and looked up at Will. "Will I…" Her voice trailed off. "I've been having trouble sleeping. It's no big deal."

Will sat down on the bed beside her and took her hand in his. "JJ I know you can't sleep. I'm right beside you, remember?" He reached up and brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

JJ shook her head. "I go to sleep, and I'm back in that day. In that moment." Tears started to form

"JJ I want you to talk to me about it. I'll help in any way I can." He squeezed her hand again. "I won't let you go through this alone, so don't shut me out okay."

"I know you won't. And I do love you for that?" JJ said smiling at her boyfriend. "You know that right?"

"Yes I do." He stood up from the bed and pulled her up to stand with him. "How about we do breakfast? We can do some strengthening exercises after if you're feeling up to it."

"Sounds like a plan." The couple headed to the kitchen for breakfast together.

JJ laid back on the couch against the pillows Will set up for her after breakfast. They had a good morning. She was able to get in some therapy for her left side, which was getting stronger every day. Garcia and Morgan both called in to check on her. Garcia called from her lair, of course, while Derek called from the out in the field. She felt lucky to have such caring co-workers. They always looked out for each other.

Will came into the living room and sat down beside her on the couch. JJ leaned her head on his shoulder and sighed. She took in the scent of his aftershave and reached for his hand. Will smiled down at her, and gently stroked her hair.

"Jennifer?"

"Hmm?"

"Can we talk about what happened?" He could feel her body tense up against him. "Only if you're up to it." He added.

"Will I got shot, and now I'm having trouble sleeping. What else is there to talk about?"

Will tilted her face up to his so he could look into her eyes. "JJ what happened to you was traumatic!" He searched her clouded blue eyes for the spark that had been there nine days ago. "It's not good to hold whatever it is you're feeling inside."

"Whatever it is I'm feeling?" JJ sat up and looked Will in the eye. She didn't say anything for what seemed like forever. Will looked back at her without saying anything. He didn't want to upset her, but if he didn't stop her from going down this road, he might not get back the JJ he had before.

"Will you can stop looking at me like that, because I know all about PTSD." She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before continuing. "I get shot doing my job, and now I get to carry this feeling with me all the time."

"JJ…" Will started, but she kept talking.

"I'm tired Will. I'm tired of feeling constant pain. I'm tired of walking around like I'm in this damn fog that I can't seem to find my way out of. I'm tired of seeing his face and hearing that gun go off every time I close my eyes!" Tears started to roll down her cheeks.

Will reached out for her, but she pushed him away. He bit his lip, and looked at his girlfriend. He hated seeing her this way, and not being able to help her. He had known that eventually she wasn't going to be able to hold whatever she was feeling in. That what had happened to her was affecting her more than she let on.

"I can't even pick up my son Will." She shook her head. "I can't pick up our boy."

"Hey." Will said, speaking softly yet firmly. "Our boy is just fine, Jennifer." He cupped her cheek in his hand so she would look at him. "All he cares about is that you're here. You're a hero to him!"

"Look at me Will." JJ gestured at her appearance and looked up at Will. "I'm a mess right now, and I don't know how to get back."

"Henry and I are your way back JJ. Your team and your family are your way back." He pulled her into a hug, being careful not to squeeze too hard. "Lean on us JJ. With all of it, and we'll be there."

JJ relaxed into his arms, and tried to let go of the pain. She knew Will and her BAU teammates were all just trying to help. And she knew that she was going to have to talk about what happened. She had been in the FBI long enough to know that after you go through a trauma they want to make sure you didn't lose your mind in the process. That would have to happen before she'd be allowed to return to work. Especially before she was allowed to carry a weapon and be out in the field.

"What are you thinking?" Will asked still holding onto her.

"I'm thinking I don't know what I'd do without you." She loosened her grip from around his waist and pulled back a little so she could look at his face. "I love you Will."

"I know you do." He kissed her forehead. "I love you too."

Later that evening the Lamontagne-Jareau family sat down to dinner. They sat at in the living room and decided to eat picnic style. JJ leaned back against the couch and Will and Henry sat on the floor next to her. Henry looked up at his mother and smiled.

"Mommy you ready for a picnic?" He asked.

"Yes I am little man. You and your daddy did such a good job getting everything ready."

Will leaned over and ruffled his son's long blond hair. "He actually did most of the cooking too. Isn't that right buddy?"

"Wow, then I am impressed!" JJ said to her young son.

"Mommy like mac and cheese?"

"It's my favorite." JJ said winking at him.

"Hey Henry how about after we get done, we help mommy get into bed? Then we can bring her some ice cream for dessert."

Henry nodded his head enthusiastically and looked back at his mom. "Mommy you still hurt right?" His bright blue eyes brimmed with a mixture of concern and innocence.

"Just a little bit, baby, but don't worry. Mommy is getting better every day."

"I help daddy take care of you!"

"You're the best helper!"

JJ leaned back against the pillows on the couch again and watched her boyfriend and son gather up the dishes and take everything into the kitchen. JJ had been thinking a lot about her and Will's arrangement these last few days. They had been a couple for nearly five years, and had Henry three years ago. Will had asked JJ to marry him at least a half a dozen, but JJ had said no. Not because she didn't love Will, but because she didn't think they needed a piece of paper to prove it to society. JJ loved her family with all her heart, and what happened to her made her think that maybe a piece of paper saying that they were legally together wouldn't be such a bad thing. JJ was pulled out of her thoughts when Henry came back into the room, leaving will in the kitchen to finish cleaning up.

"Mommy I sit beside you?" He asked standing next to the couch.

"Of course buddy, come on up." JJ patted the cushion next to her. Henry climbed up onto the couch beside his mother.

The toddler looked up at his mother with the same blue eyes that she had. JJ felt overwhelmed with love for her son. She hated to think about how there had been a chance she may ne have been able to be there for him. He and Will were everything to her, and she would do everything in her power to get back to being the mom and girlfriend they were used to having.

"Mommy you still hurt right?" Henry asked.

JJ nodded her head and stroked her son's hair. "Mommy is still a little hurt, but I'm getting better every day."

"Me and daddy take care of you."

"Yes, sweetheart, you and daddy have been taking good care of me. That's why I'm getting better."

Will came from the kitchen and stopped just short of entering the room. He leaned against the door frame, and watched his girlfriend and his son interact with each other. Their son was without a doubt the most understanding, patient, and kindest child he had ever known. And he was all theirs! His mom couldn't hold him, and he understood that. He knew that his parents both had jobs that put them in danger. But to him they might as well be superheroes. After all they went out to try and catch the bad guys for a living. Will walked into the room to the couch where they sat. He held out his arms for Henry to jump into.

"Come on bud." Will said. "Daddy will hold you so we both can sit next to momma okay." Henry nodded holding out his arms so Will could pick him up. Will sat down on the couch next to JJ, now with Henry on his lap.

"I was just telling Henry that I'm starting to feel much better thanks to my two best guys."

Will grinned at Henry and gave held up his hand so he could give him a hi-five. "See buddy, I told you mommy would feel better if we take care of her."

Henry giggled at his dad, and JJ couldn't help but laugh at her son and boyfriend. The family sat in the living room, and JJ watched as Will and Henry played with toy trucks in the floor. Before they knew it, it was time for dinner, and then time for Henry to be tucked into bed.

Will had made sure Henry brushed his teeth and helped him into bed. JJ had read him his favorite bedtime story in their bed, so now all he needed to do was make sure he was tucked in tight, and that he had his favorite stuffed dog.

"Goodnight buddy." Will said. "Mommy and I will see you in the morning. I love you."

"Love you daddy." Will closed the door softly, and headed back to the bedroom to check on JJ. She was resting against a mound of pillows, and her eyes were closed.

JJ opened her eyes at Will's presence. "Hey." She said simply.

"Hey you fallin' asleep on me cher?"

"Maybe I am." JJ sat up a little and ran a hand down his arm.

"I guess that's okay considering you didn't really nap at all today." He leaned over to kiss her on the cheek.

"Come lay with me." She said quietly.

"My pleasure sweetheart." He said crawling up to lie next to her. Will let JJ lean back on him, and he stroked her hair and her arm. He breathed in her scent, and could feel her chest rise and fall with his breathing.

"This feels nice."

"Sure does." He said softly. He bent his head so his lips could reach her neck, and he kissed her. "Then again getting to hold onto you always feels more than nice." His lips were still against her neck as he spoke.

"The doctor says no sex for at least another couple of weeks babe."

"Mmm, I know. I just don't know how I'm going to last is all." He let out a short laugh. "Hell, I don't know how I lasted these last nine days!"

"I miss you too."

"The doctor didn't say we couldn't make out right?" He wiggled his eyebrows up and down suggestively at her.

JJ laughed and turned slightly so she could face him. "Since when can you make out with me, and not want to do anything more than that?"

"Since I miss you, and I know you're hurting so I promise to be gentle."

Will smoothed her hair and smiled at her. She smiled back at him as he moved closer to her still.

"You are so beautiful Jennifer." He traced her cheek with his finger to her mouth. "I want those blue eyes to sparkle like they did before."

JJ reached up and grasped his hand in hers. She closed the gap between them and pressed her mouth to his. They kissed chastely at first. He savored the feel of her lips moving beneath his. He pulled back ever so slightly, and looked at her face. Her eyes were closed, and he cupped her face in his hands and kissed her again. Harder this time, and she responded by pulling him closer with her right arm.

JJ could feel her breath start to come faster as the kiss built up. Their tongues moved against one another in a tantalizing fashion, and JJ couldn't help but let out a soft moan. She had missed them being this close! She could, however, feel the slow yet steady rise of pain start to permeate her body as she continued to kiss Will. She never wanted to let him go.

As much as Will was enjoying this make out session, he knew if he didn't slow things down they would both be in trouble. More with JJ and not in a good way. Pulling away from her lips, she felt him try to hold into him. He kissed her one last time on the lips before resting his forehead against hers. He looked at her face, and saw her eyes were squeezed shut tight. She was trying not to wince in pain, but he knew better.

"Hey JJ." He held her face in his hands. "Hey look at me. " She opened her eyes on his command.

"Are you alright?"

"Will I'm fine."

"Hey I'm sorry if…" She cut him off mid-sentence.

"Will don't be sorry. I wanted to kiss you like that." She looked him in the eye. "I want you, but I know we can't right now. I'll be fine."

"You're hurt JJ." He said.

"And I'll be okay Will." She leaned back against the pillows. "I just need my pain killers, then I'll be good."

Will went into the bathroom and got her pain pills. Once she took two, he made her lie back down. It was time for her to get some sleep for the night. Will watched her as she started to drift off to sleep, and made mental note of her body visibly relaxing. Tomorrow was another day. The team would be back and would want to check in on her. He was happy for her to have the company of her good friends. He was hoping that maybe Garcia or maybe even Hotch could get her to open up about the shooting. I guess he would find out soon enough. Will lie down in bed next to his girlfriend and tried to get some rest. Most nights all he did was end up watching JJ. He loved her so much!

**Okay people that is all for now. I've got some good ideas for chapters to come, so don't worry. Thank you all for the reviews!**


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey folks I'm back. Thanks for hanging with me while life, work, ect.. get in the way of me updating like I want to. Hope you enjoy! Don't forget to review!**

**Chapter 10 **

**No Matter What**

"Thanks for coming with me Derek." Emily said as they drove to Will and JJ's place Friday evening.

"Hey it's all good, Emily." Derek said flashing his one hundred watt smile from the driver seat of his SUV. "I wanted to check on our girl anyway."

He steered his Jeep onto their friends' street. Coming to a stop in front of their townhouse, he turned Emily after killing the engine. He looked at the burnette with a hint of concern in his eyes.

"What's up with the face, Emily?"

"It's nothing." Emily smiled so he would know she was being genuine. "I've just been worried about JJ. Especially with us all being back to work, and being away on a case."

"We all talked to JJ when we were out on this last case. It doesn't take a profiler to see that she's most likely having a rough time."

"Will says she has her ups and downs." They climbed out of Derek's SUV and made their way up the walkway to the front door.

"We already know she's going to have to go through some sort of counseling." Derek said matter of fact tone. "We just need to let her know that we have her back no matter what." He knocked lightly on the door.

A few seconds later Will answered the door with Henry in tow.

"Uncle Derek! Aunt Emily!" Henry cried with excitement.

"Hey guys come on in." Will greeted them.

"Henry what's up little man?" Derek asked scooping the toddler off the ground and into his arms.

"You come to visit mommy?" he asked.

"Yes sir." Derek answered him.

"Thanks for letting us stop over Will." Prentiss said as they made their way through the foyer and into the living room to JJ.

"It's no problem." Will said. "She's sick of looking at my face 24/7."

"Yeah right!" Emily exclaimed laughing. They rounded the corner to see JJ was resting comfortably on the couch.

"Hey guys!" JJ greeted her friends and teammates. "You guys really didn't have to stop out here after a long week at work."

"JJ we had to come and check on you dear!" Emily exclaimed.

"Yeah how are you feeling JJ?" Morgan sat down in a chair opposite her. His brown eyes were full of concern. Henry jumped from Derek's arms and ran off to his room.

JJ looked over at Will who looked back at her without saying anything. He hoped she would be straight with her friends and co-workers, and tell them exactly how she was doing. He knew they would understand. After an awkward silence JJ finally answered Derek's question.

"I'm healing up okay." She told him and Emily truthfully.

Emily regarded her friend. "That's great, but what about the other stuff?"

JJ sighed, knowing they wanted to know more than just how her gunshot wound was healing. They were the best profilers she knew, and she couldn't keep much from them.

"The other stuff…" she began, trailing off. "It's day to day." She began to play with a thread from the blanket that covered her.

"Talk to us JJ." Derek prodded gently looking briefly at Will.

"Some days are harder than others guys." Will sat down beside her on the couch and took her hand. She squeezed his hand in hers and continued speaking.

"I know I'm going to have to go through some sort of counseling before I can be out in the field with you. Maybe even before I come back fulltime. "

"JJ you're doing so well." Emily remarked. "It's not a surprise you're having symptoms of PTSD."

"I just wanna go to sleep one day, and not relive all of this. Maybe wake up one morning and be passed it."

Now it was Will's turn to interject. "JJ it's gonna take some time darling."

"He right baby girl. We're all here for you, and work will still be there when you're ready to come back."

JJ smiled at Morgan. "I know, and you guys have all been great."

JJ was relieved when the conversation shifted to Henry who came down from his room with a few toys to show Emily and Derek. Then they caught up on the latest work gossip. JJ felt her body beginning to give her that warning it always did at night. That it was tired and ready for pain meds. Everyone else seemed to sense this as well. Emily and Derek rose up out of their chairs.

"We should get going." Emily said to Will and JJ.

Morgan kneeled down to say goodbye to Henry. "Hey buddy thanks for showing us your cool toys!"

"You play with them next time." Henry told him.

"It's a deal little man." Everyone laughed at the two of them.

"JJ Pen will be checking in tomorrow. She and Kevin were talking about making a lasagna or something." Emily said before heading to the door.

"Sounds good." JJ replied.

Will walked Emily and Derek to the door. "Thanks for coming over." He ran a hand through his dark hair. "It's not easy for her to talk about what happened."

"Hey man it's no problem." Morgan clapped Will on his shoulder as they stepped through the door into outside.

"We love JJ. We just wanna see her back to her normal self."

The young detective said goodnight and went back into the house where JJ was sitting with Henry on the couch.

"Hey little man it's just about time for bed."

"You make sure mommy gets tucked in, right daddy!"

"I sure will! Give your momma a kiss goodnight."

Henry kissed his mom on the cheek and gave her a gentle squeeze. "Night mommy. You'll feel better in the morning." He gathered his blanket and favorite stuff dog, and Will scooped him up in his arms.

"Goodnight sweetheart. I love you!" JJ said.

"JJ I'll tuck him in then come down and help you."

"Will I can make it up the stairs and into our room. I promise." She added when he looked skeptical.

JJ slowly pulled herself up off the couch to prove it to him. "See."

Will shook his head and headed to Henry's room to put him to bed. He called back to her over his shoulder. "Just take it slow, and be careful!"

"I will detective."

Will tucked Henry into bed and read him their favorite story. Once he snuggled down in his blankets, and could barely keep his eyes open, Will made sure the nightlight was on and quietly closed the door.

Will caught up to JJ just as she was reaching the top of the short staircase. JJ was doing really well getting around the house over the last few days. He had to hand it to her! The woman was tough! He reached out to take her hand.

"JJ you really are doing great." He walked with her to their bedroom and helped her ease down on the bed.

"It's because I have you and Henry here. I don't know what I would do without you."

"That's the other way around cher. I for one would be lost without you." He leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Lay back and try to get some sleep awhile." He told her. "It's been a long day, and you need your rest."

JJ smiled and curled up on her right side facing Will as he laid back and clicked on the tv in their room. He looked down at her dozing off as he flipped through the channels. It did her good to talk to her friends from work tonight. He was glad she was able to at least tell them that she had her ups and downs. He knew in their line of work that they would expect it. He also knew that they would be there for her no matter what.

Will woke up when he felt a sudden poke to his leg. "What the…?" he wondered aloud. He looked over to see JJ moving in her sleep. "JJ.."

She twisted her body, as her face seemed to register an extreme amount of pain. She was having another nightmare. He touched her arm gently, and she let out a moan. "No…" she whimpered.

Will was scared so he shook her ever so gently. "JJ wake up darling." She just moaned again and moved her head from side to side. "JJ you're having a bad dream."

All of the sudden JJ shot upright, eyes wide open. Doing this caused a sharp pain to radiate through her chest and abdomen, and cried out. Hot tears immediately pricked behind her eyes, and she tried to catch her breath. Will wanted to help her, but he didn't want to make her pain worse by touching her.

"JJ, honey, shhh…" He tried to sooth her. She was trembling, and tears now ran down her cheeks as the pain and the dream took over. "JJ it was just a nightmare. I'm right here."

"Will…" she could barely form a sentence the pain was so bad. "Help me…"

"Jay I'm right here." He reached over to his nightstand and clicked on the small lamp. "Let me get you your pain meds. I think they're on your table right there." He stretched over her and picked up her bottle of tablets. He saw she already had water sitting there as well. First though, he needed to get her calmed down.

"Will it hurts so bad.." JJ felt like she was seeing stars. The movement in her sleep along with jolting awake really pulled at her insides. She clung onto Will's shirt, and cried. He wrapped his arms around her gently.

"Shh… It's alright." He stroked her hair and felt her tears come through his t-shirt. "It was just a dream. You're with me, and you're going to be fine." He listened for her breathing to even out before continuing. "Can you swallow a pain pill JJ?"

She nodded her head, and he handed her a pill then water. She took the pill, but she was still shaky. Will took the glass out of her hands and placed it back on his nightstand.

"I'm sorry." She whispered.

"For what?"

"I just can't stop thinking about it." A shiver ran through body. It was so strong Will could see it. It broke his heart.

"JJ you never have to apologize for any of this." He told her firmly but gently. "Okay? None of it."

Will leaned back against the pillows on the bed with his girlfriend in his arms. He made a mental note to call Hotch as soon as he got the chance tomorrow. JJ would have to see someone soon now. He just hoped they could get through the weekend without her breaking completely. She was strong, but the lack of sleep every night because of the nightmares weren't doing anything but keeping from healing the way she should be. She was being torn apart from the inside out, and it scared him more every day.

He looked down at JJ and saw that her eyes were open and seems to be staring into nothing. He stroked her hair and back, but didn't say anything. Finally it was her that spoke.

"Do you think I made a mistake leaving the Pentagon last year, and rejoining the BAU?"

"No I don't JJ." He told her simply.

"Why not?" She never lifted her head off of his chest to look at him. "I never would've got shot if I stayed."

Will pulled her away from his body as gently as he could so he could look her in the eyes before saying what he needed to say. He had to be sure she heard every word.

"Jennifer listen to me, please." She lifted her eyes to his face, so he continued. "You weren't happy when you worked for the Pentagon. I could see that. You went back to doing something that you loved! You help so many people. You and the rest of your team."

"I know but…"

Will stopped her mid-sentence. "No buts, JJ. No regrets either. I don't have any, and I don't want you to."

JJ nodded as tears came to her eyes. She felt like she could never fully express how grateful she was to have Will. And Henry. She just wanted the nightmares to stop, and have things go back to normal. She leaned on Will again, and he reached up to turn off the bedside lamp.

"I don't wanna close my eyes Will." She whispered.

"I understand honey, but just know that if you do close your eyes, I'm going to be the one that's here okay."

Will held JJ in the darkness of their bedroom. They must have stayed like that four hours. Only when Will felt JJ's body completely relax, and her breathing become even did he allow himself to close his eyes. He said a silent prayer, hoping that some higher power would hear him, and help comfort JJ. They had the weekend ahead of them, and miles to go before she would be whole again. Will drifted off to sleep with his angel in his arms.

_**Okay guys I know that was short, but I have an idea for the next chapter, and I want to put pen to paper before it fades. I hope you enjoyed, and don't forget to read and review! Thanks to all of you who have already. It means the world to me!**_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

**No Matter What**

JJ lay in bed staring at the ceiling on Monday morning. The weekend hadn't been stellar, but not horrible either. She turned to see the time on her alarm clock on the nightstand. It was just a little after 10am. Will had gotten up without bothering her so he could get Henry up and moving for preschool. She knew the physical therapist was due this afternoon sometime. She also knew that Hotch was going to have her talk to the psychologist that was on staff at Quantico. She dreaded this entire day, even though she knew that taking these steps were necessary in order for her to get on the road to being the JJ everyone knew before the shooting. She didn't know herself anymore these days.

Getting out of bed JJ went into the bathroom to wash up. At least this was something she could do on her own now. Once dressed in comfy yoga pants and a long sleeved t-shirt, JJ made her way downstairs to the kitchen. Will would be back soon, and she wanted to show him that she was at least able to function without constantly having to be hovered over. She was just about to attempt to pour herself a cup of coffee when she heard the gate open and close outside. Glancing out the kitchen window he saw that Will was home.

He walked into the kitchen and smiled at her. "Hey good morning." He gave her a quick kiss on the lips. "You look good. How are you feeling this morning?"

"I'm okay. How was Henry this morning? I'm sorry I slept through you getting him up today."

"He's fine JJ, and it's okay you slept in." He saw she was holding an empty mug, and poured them both some coffee.

"Thanks."

"My pleasure." He said smiling. Will watched JJ move to the living room and sit down slowly on the couch. He had spoken with Hotch about JJ meeting with the therapist the BAU had. The plan was for Hotch to come over with whomever this person was. This would happen after her pt session. Looking down at his watch he realized that was just a little over an hour from now. He walked into the room to sit down next to JJ. She regarded him with curious eyes.

"What is it Will?"

"Nothing, Jennifer." He reached for her hand. "You know after pt today, Aaron arranged for the psychologist to come talk to you, right?"

JJ pulled her hand out of Will's grasp. "I know. We talked about this yesterday, remember?"

Will raised his eyebrows in surprise at JJ's slightly snippy tone. He decided to let it go for now though. He didn't want to start an argument with her. He decided to shift the conversation towards something that wasn't post-shooting related.

"So since you've been feeling better I thought maybe we could go outside for a while." He gestured towards the window. "It's beautiful out there today."

"Maybe." She responded absent-mindedly. She flipped through the channels on tv without really seeing what was on.

Will sighed and got up from the couch. "I'm going to go get the kitchen cleaned up before Zack gets here." He was her physical therapist. If she didn't want to go outside or talk to him about how she was feeling, then he would busy himself with getting their home cleaned up before company came over.

JJ watched as Will moved through the house picking up toys, and loading the dishwasher. She knew she should apologize for being short with him, but she just didn't have the energy to do it. He was only trying to help, and she wasn't making it easy for him. Sighing, JJ turned off the tv. Just then her cell phone started buzzing. She picked it up and saw that it was Hotch. She let it ring four times before finally pressing the talk button.

"Hello?" she said into the receiver.

"JJ it's me Hotch."

"Yeah I know. What's up?" She tried to keep her tone neutral.

"How are you doing today? Will tells me you're up and moving around a lot more now."

JJ started to pace as she spoke on the phone. "Yeah, I'm healing up pretty nicely. Sudden movements aren't nearly as painful as they were before."

"You're still up for me and Dr. Casbaugh coming over later right?"

"Yeah Hotch it's fine. We might as well dive right in." She laughed so that he would know that she was fine with it.

"Sounds good JJ. We'll see you and Will later today then."

"Okay, we'll be here." After hanging up JJ looked up to see that Will had stopped doing whatever he had been doing so he could watch her. She raised her blond eyebrows to him in a silent question.

"That was Hotch?" Will asked.

"Yeah he just wanted to check in and let us know that he and the shrink would be over later."

"That's good JJ." He came to stand beside her in the living room. He lifted her chin so that she would look him in the eye. "Honey, I don't want you to worry. This is a good thing JJ."

"I know Will." She allowed him to pull her into a hug, and he kissed her temple. "I just hope it helps. I'm tired of waking up and feeling like this every day."

"No worries, love. We'll get through this together."

/

It was later in the day, and JJ had finished her physical therapy session. Zack of course praised her for the strength she had regained on her left side. She would be done with monitored sessions very soon. Will had brought Henry home, but now he was next door playing with their neighbor Kate and her daughter. She and Dee, his regular sitter, had been great about spending extra time with Henry since the shooting.

JJ was running a brush through her hair in the bathroom when Will came in. He lifted his hands to her shoulders, and rubbed gently. JJ sighed and leaned her head back. She had spent so much of the day acting indifferent towards Will, she was grateful to have him still think of the little things to help relieve the stress she felt every day.

"Thank you." She murmured, closing her eyes as his hands worked their magic.

Will laughed and leaned in to kiss the back of her neck. "It's my pleasure, cher."

JJ turned around to face him. "Hotch and Dr. Casbaugh should be here any minute." Then as if right on cue, the doorbell rang. "Here we go."

Will stopped JJ before walking out of the bathroom. "Hey wait up." He said.

"Will what…?" Whatever she was about to say was muffled when Will pressed his lips to hers in a kiss. Before she could register what was happening, the kiss was over. He then pulled her out of the bathroom, and to the front door so they could greet their guests.

Will opened the door, letting Hotch and Dr. Casbaugh in. She was a female psychiatrist, and Will was secretly grateful for that. He felt like JJ would be comfortable talking to a woman.

"Thanks for coming Hotch." Will greeted them once they stepped inside. "Dr. Casbaugh, thank you for coming out here. I know this is probably a little unconventional."

"It's nice to meet you Will, and it's no trouble at all." She smiled warmly at him.

Hotch glanced around. "Where's JJ?"

"In the living room." He began walking in that direction. "Right this way." He said to them.

Walking into the living room they found JJ was standing near the fireplace looking at the pictures on the mantel. She turned to face them when she heard them enter the room.

"Hey Hotch." She greeted her unit chief with a smile. She was going to try and be on her best behavior.

"JJ it's good to see you." He gestured towards the doctor standing to his right. "This is Dr. Casbaugh."

The doctor held her hand out to shake JJ's, who accepted the gesture. "It's nice to meet you Jennifer. I've heard a lot about you from SSA Hotchner."

"All good, I hope." JJ quipped. "And you can call me JJ. It's fine."

"I told her you're one of the best." Hotch stated proudly.

"Does anyone need anything to drink?" Will offered once they had all taken a seat. Once everyone answered, he quickly went to the kitchen to get his girlfriend and their guests something drink. He came back a few minutes later and took a seat next to JJ on the couch.

JJ looked around at everyone in the room. _I guess this is it, she thought to herself_. "So…?" She didn't know where to begin.

Dr. Casbaugh smiled at JJ's apprehension. "I want to keep this first meeting informal JJ. I really just want to get a feel of how you're doing."

"Okay." JJ said nodding. She instinctively reached for Will's hand, and he squeezed it reassuringly.

"Once you come back to the BAU, we'll have plenty of time to ease back into the swing of things as far as work is concerned."

"So what do we talk about now?" She asked the doctor. She glanced over at Hotch who gave her a nod of much needed encouragement.

"Well, if you can, you can start by telling me what happened that day."

JJ felt the lump in her throat but ignored it as she briefly recounted in her head what happened the day she got shot. She cleared her throat before actually speaking.

"Um yeah.." JJ had never been at such a loss for words. Being the media liason for the BAU so long had given her the ability to speak pretty much off the cuff in any situation. But not now. "We uh… We had just gotten a case, and…" she stopped to take a breath.

"It's okay JJ take your time." Dr. Casbaugh said, smiling kindly.

"We left the BAU on Monday to work a new case. I was with Hotch and another team member."

"Dr. Spencer Reid?"

"Yes. We were going to questions a possible witness and the other half of the team went to about apprehending the Unsub."

"That's your unknown subject, right?" The doctor asked to clarify. "The suspect in the case?"

"That's right." JJ said nodding her head.

"And what happened when the three of you were with this witness?" She was making notes in a small notebook she had pulled out once the questions began.

JJ closed her eyes at this question as the scene unfolded in her head. She could feel a shiver run through her body, and she guessed that Will probably felt it too. His hand came to rest on her shoulder. She opened her eyes at his touch.

"JJ…" Will started, but she cut him off.

JJ looked Dr. Casbaugh in the eye. "What happened? I was shot by some loser because he grew up without his brother."

Hotch looked at his agent, but didn't say anything. He knew JJ would be upset, and his heart went out to her. It was a horrible thing to have to relive. And he was sitting here while a complete stranger asked her about the worst day of her life.

Dr. Casbaugh was unfazed by JJ's bitter tone though. "In the moments right before that how did you feel Jennifer?"

_So she's back to calling me Jennifer, JJ thought. She's not my friend_. "I felt scared." JJ responded in a matter of fact tone. "He surprised me, and I couldn't react fast enough to do anything about it."

"I suppose no one could've reacted fast enough." The doctor stated, looking pointedly at JJ.

JJ glanced at Hotch who met her gaze. "No they couldn't have." She stated, her voice barely above a whisper. "You couldn't have done anything Hotch." She told her unit chief. She answered his silent question.

"You're doing great JJ." Will whispered in her ear, noticing the tears in her eyes.

Dr. Casbaugh didn't want to upset JJ, so she would ask just a few more questions. JJ answered as best as she could, but was growing weary of the doctor being in her home. Hotch sensed this, and suggested they continue when JJ would return to the BAU. This could happen as soon as next week if she was feeling up to it. Desk duty of course.

"JJ before we go I just wanted can I ask one more thing?"

"Sure." JJ said.

"I know that it hurt, and that it still hurts. I also know that what happen will be with you for some time to come. But can you do me a favor since we're going to be working closely as doctor and patient?"

"What's that?" JJ asked with her defenses still up.

"I want you to be able to talk about what happened with myself, Will, or even Agent Hotchner here." She passed her car to Will so they would both have all of her contact numbers and email. "Can I count on you not to hold your feelings in?"

JJ hesitated before answering and glanced briefly at Will who nodded his head in encouragement. "Okay." She finally responded. "That seems fair."

"That's great Jennifer." Dr. Casbaugh responded with an enthusiastic tone. "I have a feeling you're going to be just fine. It's just going to take some time that's all."

They all stood up so Will and JJ could walk their guests to the door. Hotch finally spoke up before they left. "JJ we're all here okay. The whole team."

"I know." JJ said.

"We miss you." In a rare moment when Hotch was actually trying to be funny he added, "Morgan is having trouble keeping both Garcia and Reid under control."

JJ couldn't help but let out a small laugh. "Yeah we usually split those duties."

"Well you two have a good night, and we'll talk again soon." Dr. Casbaugh said. They all said their goodbyes, and Will closed the front door behind them. JJ let out an audible sigh of relief once the Bureau SUV pulled out of the driveway.


	12. Chapter 12

_**The writer's block that I have had on this story has been killing me. Sorry if it seemed like I abandoned the story. I'm back, and now have a pretty good idea of where I'm going with it. As always, I don't own these characters. Don't forget to review!**_

Chapter 12

JJ sat up in bed on Wednesday morning. Will's side of the bed was empty, indicating that he was already up and moving. Sighing, she stood up and put on her bathrobe. She was to be at the BAU this morning to see Dr. Casbaugh and to talk with Hotch and Strauss about a return date for work. Physically she was feeling better. The pain was less, the scars were finally starting to fade, and she was able to move around more and not have too much pain. She walked into the closet and pretty much stared at the contents on her side of it. The sound of Will's voice brought her out of her trance.

"JJ what are you doing in here?" he asked. His southern drawl seemed thicker than normal. His accent always gave her stomach butterflies.

"I don't know what I should wear to the BAU today."

"I don't think they're gonna care what you're wearing darling."

"I know Will, but I do care." JJ said letting out a sigh of frustration.

"You're not even going there to work JJ. Plus you're still healing up." Will laid a hand on her shoulder. "I know you're anxious honey, but it's gonna be alright."

JJ knew that Will was right. And she knew that the team or probably not even Strauss cared what she looked like. Aside from going to the doctors and the occasional venture to the backyard, she hadn't been away from the house. She was actually kind of excited to see her friends, even if was at the BAU. She hadn't been away from the house except to go to the doctors. And even though she knew she had to talk to the therapist again before getting cleared for duty, she felt like she needed to be out in the world again.

After settling on a pair of comfy track pants and a matching shirt, she headed into the bathroom to shower. Twenty minutes later she went into the kitchen to find Will in the kitchen reading the paper while sipping coffee. Henry's sitter, Dee had picked him up to go on a play date a little while ago, so she and Will had the place to themselves for now. She walked up to the cabinet to see if she could reach up and open it without too much pain. Will had been trying to make sure that everything, especially in the kitchen, was within her reach. She didn't see any coffee mugs out this morning though. Will looked up from his newspaper to see JJ about to strain herself reaching for a mug. He jumped up immediately to help her.

"JJ please!" he exclaimed. His blue eyes were wide with concern. "Let me do that. I don't want you hurting yourself over a cup of coffee."

He reached up over her head, retrieved her favorite mug, and poured her a hot cup of coffee. She accepted the mug he handed to her with a smile.

"Thanks."

"It's no trouble at all. I'm sorry I forget to get one out for you."

He brushed a strand of blond hair from her face and leaned in to kiss her softly on the cheek. She had been through so much in these last two weeks. She had good days and not so good days, but he was sure that she was finally turning a corner. He missed the old JJ, and he missed how close they could be both mentally and physically.

"So are you about ready to go?" he asked her. She still wasn't allowed to drive yet.

"I'm as ready as I'll ever be I guess." She said shrugging her shoulders. She downed the last of her coffee, and grabbed her purse. "Let's do this."

Will grabbed his car keys from the counter, and held JJ's hand as they headed out the door. He could feel how tense she, was and he squeezed her hand in silent way of telling her that it would be okay. If she got through this day and being back at the BAU, he knew she could get through anything.

She didn't say much on the car ride to Quantico. Will looked at her profile and smiled at how beautiful she was. Even when she wasn't quite herself. He was a lucky man, and he knew it. He reached over with his right hand to rub her arm, and she gave him a brave smile.

"You alright?" he asked.

"Just nerves I guess." She replied. "I'll be okay once we get there."

"You said Garcia called you this morning already?" his eyes were on the road. "She must be excited that you're coming in today."

"Oh she is." JJ assured him. "She'll probably be there to meet us as soon as we pull up."

"She's just looking out for her best friend."

"I know. And I love her for it."

Ten minutes later they pulled up to FBI Headquarters, and sure enough, there was Penelope Garcia at the entrance waiting for her best friend. She opened the door to the parking garage and opened the car door for JJ.

"My flower!" She exclaimed. "How are you?" She helped JJ step out of the car and closed the door behind her.

"I'm okay Garcia." JJ answered giving her a small smile. "Have you been watching for us?"

"Of course I have! JJ I want you to know that I got your back while you're here."

"See I told you." Will commented as he locked the car and walked with them to the doors to get back into the building. He waited while the ladies both scanned their badges so the doors would open and he followed them inside. They stopped at the security guard nearby so he could get his visitor badge.

They rode the elevator up the sixth floor where the BAU was located, and stepped off when the doors opened. JJ felt the nerves build up again at the familiar bustling of agents going from the bullpen to their respective offices. She really did miss being there, but at the same time, she couldn't help but think about the last time she was here. An average morning at work turned into her being shot! She swallowed hard, and instinctively reached for her boyfriend's hand. Garcia looked at her with wide eyes full of concern.

"It's okay Jayje."

JJ nodded her head and opened the door to the bullpen. She noticed Emily and Spencer who immediately jumped from their desks to greet her as she came through the door.

"Hey!" Reid exclaimed as he rushed over to her.

"JJ!" Emily was equally excited to see her co-worker and friend. "How are you feeling?" she asked.

JJ smiled at her friends, and relaxed some knowing that they were all just concerned for her well-being. She started to feel better about getting through this psyche evaluation with Dr. Casbaugh.

"I'm doing okay. I feel a lot better than I did since you saw me last time anyway."

Just then Derek walked in. He shook Will's hand and pulled JJ into a light hug.

"Hey there, blond stunner. How are you feeling?"

"I'm doing better Derek. It's been tough, but thanks to Will and all of you I think that all things considered, it could be worse."

"Well you're on good hands with Dr. Casbaugh." Spencer assured her. He had gone to her after his bout with taking dilaudad a few years back.

"Hotch is expecting me, so I better get up there." She grabbed Will's hand again. "I promise I'll let you all know how it goes."

She and Will stopped at Hotch's office door, and she took a deep breath before knocking.

"Come in!" Came her unit chief's voice from the other side of the door. She pushed open the door, and Will followed closely behind her.

"JJ good morning." He greeted them both almost formally. "Detective." He said to Will shaking his hand.

"Please sit down and make yourselves comfortable." He told them. He turned his attention to his profiler. "JJ how are you doing?"

"I'm okay." She began slowly. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little nervous about being back here."

"That's understandable. It's going to take some time to get back into the swing of things. That's what today is about." He glanced down at his watch. "Dr. Casbaugh should be here any minute."

JJ nodded her head without saying anything. Will looked from Hotch to JJ and cleared his throat before speaking.

"JJ if you want me to stay in here while…" he began softly.

"I need you in here with me Will." She said before letting him finish. "Hotch is that okay?"

"It's fine JJ. In fact when Dr. Casbaugh comes in, the room is yours." He stood up from his desk. "I have some case files to go over with Dave anyway."

Just then there was a firm knock at the door. Aaron opened the door to let Dr. Casbaugh in. "Good morning Dr." he greeted her. "I was just excusing myself to give you some privacy."

"Thank you Aaron." She turned her attention to JJ and Will. "Good morning! How are you both today?"

"I guess we'll find out." JJ said with a tight smile.

"Yes I suppose we will." The doctor replied warmly. She turned back to Hotch. "Thank you again for the use of your office. I always try to do these things on home turf if you know what I mean."

"It's no problem. I'll be in with agent Rossi if you need me." He closed the door quietly behind him and headed to Dave's office. He couldn't help but notice the rest of the team in the bullpen keeping a watchful eye on what was going on. He knew they were worried about JJ, and wanted to make sure that she was going to be okay. He did too. More than anything!

Meanwhile, in Hotchner's office….

"Will's going to stay if that's okay." JJ said to the doctor.

"It's more than okay Jennifer." She said. "I want you to feel comfortable, and if having Will here is what you want, then of course he can stay."

"Thank you, doctor." Will said.

"Let's get started, shall we?" Dr. Casbaugh opened her file, and put on her reading glasses. She saw JJ become visibly tense and added, "No worries okay? Just some questions to start, then we'll see how things go from there."

"Okay." JJ said. "What do you want to know?"

"First I'd like to know how you're feeling today. Both mentally and physically."

"I guess I feel a little tired." She looked at Will who gave her a nod of encouragement. "I'm nervous about being here too."

"And how is the pain you're feeling these days Jennifer?"

"The pain is less, but it's still there. I have to be careful about moving too quickly."

"And the scars…?"

JJ took a deep breath before answering. "They're starting to fade…"

"But…?" The doctor prodded gently.

"But seeing them every day is this shitty reminder of what happened."

"So you think about what happened to you a lot?"

"More than I'd like, yes."

"Do you talk about how you feel or what it felt like getting shot to Will?"

JJ blinked, not prepared for that question. She looked at Will, and reached out to squeeze her hand. "JJ, it's okay." He whispered.

"I guess I feel like I can't help but think about what happened, but I can help talking about it." She looked at Will then back to the doctor. "I don't like talking about it with anyone."

"And how do you feel about it being mandated that you talk to me about it?"

"They won't let me come back to work unless I talk to you, so here I am."

"Fair enough." Dr. Casbaugh said with a wry grin. "So since you have to be here, and I have to ask you questions then let's keep going okay?"

"Sure" JJ replied.

The doctor turned her attention to Will for a brief moment. "I want you to feel like you can interject at any time Will. You play a key, if not main role in helping Jennifer get through this."

"I'll do whatever I have to do doctor." Will said with conviction.

She focused on her patient again. "Does what happened or what you're going through interrupt your sleep at night?"

"Are you asking me if I have nightmares about getting shot?"

"Yes I am."

"Of course I do!" she exclaimed. "Wouldn't you?"

"Most likely." She turned to Will. "When she has these nightmares does she wake you up?"

Will squeezed JJ's hand in a show of support. "There are some nights when I can't sleep because I'm too busy watching her sleep." He reached up to stroke his girlfriend's blond hair.

"JJ I know you have nightmares, and I just want to be there for you. Already awake so that you know you're not alone."

"And I want to get to the point where I can sleep without replaying what happened over and over. I love you for being there for me."

Dr. Casbaugh went through a few more questions for both JJ and Will. Before they knew it and hour had gone by. She had taken plenty of notes, and JJ was anxious to know what her official evaluation of her would be. The doctor closed her file and removed her glasses for the first time since they had gotten started.

"Jennifer the good news is that today you have taken a huge step forward on the road to your recovery and returning to work. I know coming here today wasn't easy for you."

"So what's the verdict?" JJ asked nervously. "When can I come back?"

"I've got to discuss my findings with Agent Hotchner, but I will recommend that you return to desk duty in two weeks."

"Two weeks!" she exclaimed.

"JJ I think that two weeks is plenty of time." Will agreed with the doctor. "You don't need to rush coming back here."

"I know it may seem like a long time, but you are still healing both mentally and physically." The doctor stood up with her bag. "I want to see you at least one more time before I sign anything saying that you're clear to come back here."

"So all I can do is wait?" JJ asked.

"Let's get you healed up some more JJ." Will stood up and took her hand. "I'm not ready for you to come back here quite yet either."

"I'll be talking with you both very soon." Dr. Casbaugh said before exiting the office, leaving the couple to stand alone.

They walked out of the office, running into Hotch and the rest of the team. Everyone was eager to know when JJ would be coming back to work with them. She loved them all for being there for her over these last few weeks. She couldn't ask for a better group of people to work with. Rossi was the first to ask the obvious question.

"So what's the word kiddo?" He asked kindly. "When do we get you back?"

"In a couple of weeks maybe." She replied. "We'll see."

"I'll be sure to follow up JJ." Hotch said. "We're here as soon as you're ready to come back."

"There's no rush JJ." Morgan added. "We want you back, but we want you healthy more."

"I won't rush it. Just going a little stir crazy with not being able to do much of anything."

"Listen to your friends Jay." Will said. "They know what they're talking about."

Will turned to the team. "We should get going. She won't admit it, but too much being up and about does make her tired."

"He's right love." Garcia said. "Go home and rest. I'll check in later."

"Alright guys." JJ said with a grin. "You all know me too well."

"We'll see you guys soon." Will said as he ushered JJ towards the elevators.

Back at the Lamontagne-Jareau residence…

"Why don't you lie down for a while JJ?" Will suggested to his girlfriend. She had been moving a little slow getting out of the car. A clear sign to him that she wasn't ready to go back to work quite yet.

"Yeah I guess I'm a little tired." JJ said. She sat down on the living room couch, and Will sat down beside her.

She laid her head against his chest and he wrapped his arm around her, pulling her closer to him. She closed her eyes and took in the scent of his aftershave. Sighing, she lifted her head so she could look him in the eye.

"Will I know that the last few weeks having been easy, and I love you for being there for me. And even though I don't like talking about what happened, I like knowing that you're here for me."

"JJ I love you, and I'm always going to be here for you." He pushed a strand of golden hair behind her ear. "Nothing is going to change that."

He leaned down and gave her a soft his on her lips. He was pleasantly surprised when she brought her arm up around his neck to pull him closer. She moved he mouth against his as the kiss grew more passionate. He deepened the kiss, and he felt her tongue move against his. He could feel that she missed this closeness just as much as he missed did. He moved his lips down to kiss her neck, and he heard her let out a sigh.

"I miss you." He whispered against her neck. "I miss this."

"I miss you too." She breathed.

He moved back up to kiss her on the lips again, and after a few moments parted when he felt she needed to take a breath. He looked deep into her blue eyes without saying anything for what seemed like forever.

"I know." She said as if she were reading his mind. "I want to be with you like that, but I can't right now."

"JJ it's fine. I know you're not ready." He said softly. "I just really miss you. I miss making love to you."

"Will I know that you want to get back to being us again. I want that more than anything too."

Will hugged JJ and kissed her on top of her blond head. "JJ I love you no matter what."

She smiled as he held her close. She knew that he meant every word. Having Will, Henry, and the team there for her was everything. She looked forward to the day when this would all be behind her. She just wanted that day to come sooner rather than later.

_**Okay folks that's it for now. I hope you stick with me for the next few chapters. Hoping to wrap things up nicely for you readers. Don't forget to review!**_


	13. Chapter 13

_**Sorry so long in between updates! Life is seriously getting in the way along with a mean case of writers block! Anyways… Enjoy reading and don't forget to review!**_

**Chapter 13**

Will absentmindedly flipped through the pages of the newspaper as he sipped his coffee at the kitchen counter. It was Sunday morning, and he had purposely woken up early before JJ so he could have some time to himself. Henry had stayed at Garcia's place, as she had promised he could. Will had been doing a lot of thinking these past few days. It had been three weeks since JJ got shot. Three weeks since their lives were turned upside down. Three weeks since she had gone to work. And more importantly, three weeks since she had been herself.

He ran a hand through his dark hair and let out a sigh. Since her first visit back to the BAU on Wednesday, he had been hoping that she would've turned more of a corner in all this than she had been displaying lately. They had two successful visits with the psychologist from Quantico that was assigned to her. At least while they were with the doctor, the visits seemed helpful and productive. But JJ was on a physical and emotional rollercoaster with no signs of getting off of it soon.

Looking down at his watch and standing up, Will folded the paper, and poured another cup of coffee. He took a long sip as his eyes wandered over to the stairs leading up to their bedroom. He debated whether or not he should go check on her. She had a restless nights' sleep again. More so over the last few days than usual. He called the doctor, and JJ was given a prescription for a sleep aid. They both hated that it had come to that, but agreed that if it helped then it was for the best.

She was more withdrawn because of that over these last few days. He tried to engage her in conversation, trying to get her to open up more, but she brushed him off. He didn't want to upset her, but he couldn't help showing his frustrations sometimes. Just when they were getting closer, she would start pushing him away! He missed the way he and his girlfriend used to be. They were always laughing, having fun with Henry, and they used to have an incredible sex life. He felt like all of that was gone now. He was at a loss for what to do about all of it right now.

/

JJ laid in bed on her back staring up at the ceiling. She had been awake for some time, and she heard Will moving around downstairs. She thought about the last few days, and what he must be feeling now. Last night proved to be one of the most restless nights she had since being home from the hospital. Visions of getting shot plagued her mind when she was trying to sleep at night. She was grateful to have Will beside her every time she woke up. He was always there and held her as she cried and while she fell back asleep.

Knowing that somehow didn't make it easier to talk about it with him or anyone else. She knew she came across guarded and a little exasperated when he asked her to talk to him about what was going on in her head. He never pushed her too far though, and she was thankful for that. He was just there for her, and that's what she needed more than anything else now.

Sighing, she sat up in bed and swung her legs over the side. She closed her eyes, and put both hands flat on the bed. The strength on her left side was finally getting to the point where she was able to support some of her weight. The trauma from the gunshot and the surgery afterwards had done a real number to the muscles on that side of her body. She raised herself up off the bed and padded into the master bathroom.

JJ ran a hand through her disheveled hair, and stared at her reflection in the mirror. She hated how pale and sickly she looked since getting shot. Turning on the water in the sink, she quickly brushed her teeth then leaned down some to splash her face with cold water. She straightened herself back up and opened her eyes, again looking at herself in the mirror.

She ran a hand over her tank top and stopped at where her scar was. Taking a deep breath, she slowly lifted up her shirt and looked down. There was no denying that the scar going to be there forever. She also couldn't help but notice that her abs that were once rock hard were no more. "Dammit," she swore to herself.

"Jennifer."

Her head snapped up at the sound of Will's voice behind her. "Will!" she exclaimed, but didn't turn around. "How long have you been standing there?" she asked to his reflection.

"Long enough I guess." He said quietly. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay. I just didn't see you there."

"You're doing it again JJ."

"Doing what Will?"

He walked up behind, keeping his eyes locked on hers in the bathroom mirror. He placed his hands on her waist, and leaned in to kiss her neck. He could feel her body tense slightly at his touch, but he didn't let her go. He heard her sigh as he continued to softly kiss and nuzzle her neck. His left hand curled around her waist and came to rest where her scar was. She felt his hand snake under her shirt, and she put her hand on his arm to stop him.

"Will…" she sighed. "Don't."

"Don't what?" he asked her. "I see how you keep looking at yourself, JJ." He gripped her tighter, pulling her back towards his body.

He rested his head on her shoulder so that their heads were touching. He looked at their reflection in the mirror and smiled. How could she not see how beautiful she was?

"Look at me Will!" she exclaimed. "I'm a freaking mess."

Will sighed and turned her around so she was facing him. He reached up and brushed a strand of blond hair behind her ear.

"JJ you are gorgeous!" He tipped her chin up so she would look him in the eye.

"You're my boyfriend Will. You have to say that."

"I think you know me well enough to know that if I thought you looked bad I would tell you!"

"Remember the headband incident two years ago?" he added when he got a smile out of her.

He took her hand and walked with her out of the bedroom and down the stairs to the kitchen. He poured her a cup of coffee and they went into the living room to sit on the sofa. JJ took a long sip of coffee and leaned back on the cushions. She knew he would want to talk about last night, so she thought she'd start the conversation for once. She sat her mug down on the table and reached for his hand.

"Will…" she began. "About last night…"

"You scared me." Will said softly.

"I know I did." She bit down on her bottom lip before continuing. "I scared myself."

"What can I do JJ?" he asked. "Okay, just name it! Anything! You've been reliving what happened every night for three weeks, and it's not getting any better babe. Especially at night."

"You're doing it Will!" She told him. "By just being here you're doing it."

She grew quiet and Will watched as he knew she was thinking something but didn't want to say it. He scooted closer to her on the couch and wrapped his arm around her.

"Tell me what you're thinking JJ."

"Honestly?"

"Yeah, of course."

"I keep thinking that when Harold Jennings shot me, he took a piece of me that I can't get back." She laid her head on Will's chest. "I don't know why, and I don't know how to get it back."

"You get it back with my help Jen. And with Henry's help. And the team and Dr. Casbaugh's help!" He kissed her forehead gently. "We're all here for you."

"I know you guys are, and I love you all for that."

The couple sat in silence for a while. Will wrapped pulled her in tighter to him and laid a gentle kiss on her forehead. He was just happy that she chose to open up to him at all about how she was feeling. He missed how they used to be so much that it hurt sometimes. He figured she probably felt the same way. Then as if she had read his mind, she lifted her head to look in his eyes. He saw that her eyes still didn't have the spark that they used to, but they were still so beautiful that he got lost in them.

"Will…" she reached up to caress his stubble covered cheek. "I love you so much." Somehow a tear managed to find its way out of his eye and slide down his cheek. She reached to wipe it away.

"You're crying?" She was surprised.

"They're happy tears JJ."

"Really?"

"Well, they're mostly happy tears."

"I know I've been all over the place lately, and that it scares you. I keep thinking about how we were the weekend before…" She trailed off.

"I know." He said softly. "Me too."

"I just want to take all the pain away for you JJ." He trailed a finger down her cheek, to her neck, and to rest on her forearm. "I can't wave a magic wand or anything, but I'll do whatever I have to do to help you through all of this."

"I just need you." She leaned pulled his face down to hers and closed her eyes.

"You have me…" he said before their lips met in a lingering kiss. Her hand was on his cheek, and he ran his fingers through the length of her soft hair. The kiss grew deeper and more passionate, and she soon wrapped her arms around his neck trying to pull him closer. His tongue entered her sweet warm mouth, and he moaned when she sucked on it a bit. He knew that them making out wasn't going to fix anything, but it was their only escape for now. And he welcomed it.

He tore his lips away from hers so that he could kiss down her neck. His hands snaked under her shirt to caress her soft skin, and she didn't stop him when his hand brushed gently over her scar. He laid her gently back onto the couch and hovered over her, straddling her legs. He looked down at her and she closed her eyes briefly, trying to get ahold of her breathing.

"JJ open your eyes darling." He whispered. Her eyes snapped open on his command. "You're beautiful, and I love you."

"I love you too Will, but we can't…"

"I know we can't JJ. Just relax okay?"

Supporting all of his weight on one arm he leaned in closed and ran a hand from her hair all the way down to her hip. She trembled slightly and her lips parted as he began to kiss her again. Will was ever so conscious as to not put any weight on her at all. He kissed her mouth hungrily, and she kissed him back with just as much passion. He teased the inside of her mouth with his tongue, and let out a small chuckle as she tried to capture it between her lips.

JJ let out a sigh of disappointment when his lips left hers to travel down her neck and to her collar bone. All JJ could think about how good his lips felt on her skin. It was like nothing else mattered, and he knew that what he was doing wouldn't make her forget, but that it would burn new images in her brain. Good images!

"Will…" she breathed as she felt his lips and teeth lightly suck and nip at her skin. Her body felt like it was on fire!

He stopped his assault on her neck to look into her eyes. He had to work on getting them to sparkle like they used to. He bent and kissed her on the lips again briefly. She opened her eyes when she felt him lift up the hem of her shirt. He looked down at her scar, and touched it with just his index finger. Then he leaned down and kissed her right on her scar.

"What are doing?" she breathed. She sat up a bit so she could look at him.

"I'm reminding you that I love every part of you JJ." He laid a soft, slightly wet kiss on her scar again. "Even the parts that are new."

He was kissing her all over her stomach now, and it was driving her crazy. "I always loved your stomach." He said in between kisses. "It's perfect." He laid another kiss to the scar.

"You're sweet." She breathed.

Will brought his head back up to hover over hers and grinned. "Jennifer Jareau, you have and always will be the most beautiful, sexiest woman I have ever laid eyes on!" He moved from over her and grabbed her hand to help her sit back up.

"Thank you." She said.

"For what? For telling you the truth?"

"For that and for making me forget. For making me feel normal." She leaned up and kissed him on the lips.

"JJ I told you that I will do whatever I have to do to help you through this." He laced his fingers through hers and squeezed.

"How about we just stay like this until Penelope drops off Henry?" she asked.

"That's fine by mean darling."

She leaned her head on his chest, and he smiled down at her. Will didn't want to get his hopes up too high, but he couldn't help but think that this was the breakthrough that they both had been waiting for. He hoped that there more times like this to come, and he knew she did too. He knew that things weren't going to happen overnight, but her coming to him like this truly made him believe that no matter what, they were going to get better from this point on.

_**Okay kids, that's all for now. Please review, and pass on some ideas if you have them. All feedback is welcome! Thanks!**_


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